TWO MORE TEST POSITIVE
It’s quite clear this is more widespread, confesses chief exec
MARK CATLIN admitted the Pompey coronavirus outbreak appears ‘widespread’ as further cases were confirmed.
And that looks set to plunge the Blues’ season into chaos with Boxing Day’s fixture at home to Swindon Town postponed and the possibility others could follow suit.
Two further players tested positive for Covid-19 yesterday after Jack Whatmough did likewise on Saturday, following the defender falling ill ahead of the Hull City game on Friday.
The News understands the players in question are senior members of Kenny Jackett’s squad who would likely have been involved in the Swindon clash.
Pompey have suspended group training with the decision made to now test the entire squad.
Blues chief executive Mark Catlin, pictured above by Habibur Rahman, explained there are now concerns about what those results can reveal, coming just hours after getting the green light to push forward with fixtures when players tested negative after coming into close contact with Whatmough.
Catlin underlined the wellbeing of those in and around the first-team set-up is of critical significance, with the club following the relevant guidelines issued by the EFL and government.
Speaking yesterday, he said: ‘As I said, these things are moving quickly and the situation is changing hourly.
‘It’s moving rapidly and unfortunately a couple of players reported not feeling well today.
‘We’ve had them tested and unfortunately they’ve come back positive. So we’ve now taken the decision to test the whole squad.
‘Obviously safety is paramount and EFL protocols deem that in the event of a positive test and people feeling unwell you need to isolate the people who have come into direct contact by their definition.
‘But it’s quite clear this is more widespread, in line with the rest of society.
‘So we’ve taken the decision to totally err on the side of caution and test the whole squad.’
The news of the positive tests follows on just 48 hours from the euphoria of Pompey moving to the top of League One after victory at Hull.
The weekend has brought further outbreaks in the division, however, with six positive tests at Ipswich following on from similar problems at Sunderland, Peterborough and Bristol Rovers.
There were no plans for an emergency EFL meeting to discuss the way forward and the prospect of the season being suspended, but that now appears likely to change.