NEWPORT County AFC manager Michael Flynn insists there should be “no chance” of extending the season into the summer months due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The League Two season is due to end of April 25 this year but an extension now looks inevitable after Friday’s decision to suspend all fixtures until April 3 at the earliest.

County have seen five matches postponed as a result – trips to Stevenage and Crawley Town, a home match with Colchester United and away games at Cheltenham Town and Salford City.

The Exiles are currently scheduled to return to action against Grimsby Town at Rodney Parade on April 4 but there is no guarantee that matches will resume next month.

Summer football may be the only answer if the season is to be completed but Flynn would like to avoid that if possible.

“It’ll be interesting now to see what happens with the remaining games,” said the Exiles boss.

“There’s no chance we should be playing in the summer. The season’s long enough as it is.

“They’ve played so many games over the course of the season so a break [in the summer] is important.

“And next season starts a little bit earlier on August 1, so if they’re playing into June it will be a tough ask.

“I don’t know how they’re going to do it, I’ve got no answers,” he added.

“If you finish the league now, there’ll be a few clubs fuming because they won’t be in the automatic places or they’re getting relegated when the season hasn’t finished.

“I don’t know what the answer is and I’m just glad it’s not me making the decisions.

“We’ve all got summer holidays booked, but they might be cancelled as well.

“We’re in limbo and I think the next few weeks will be very interesting.”

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Playing matches without spectators is another possible solution but that would hit lower league clubs in the pocket and it’s not an option that Flynn favours.

“It’s out of my hands, but I’m not really up for playing behind closed doors,” he said.

“Why would you want that? Sport is about entertainment and you want that buzz of the crowd. You want to feel the atmosphere.

“You know what it’s like at Rodney Parade when there’s not a big crowd there. It feels flat. There’s no atmosphere and nobody enjoys that.”

The current unprecedented situation is another hurdle for the County manager to overcome in a season that has been full of them.

“I’ve spoken to the players and we’ve given them the advice we’ve got from our doctor,” said Flynn.

“There are hand gels all around the place, which you don’t usually see around our training ground.

“We usually shake hands every morning – all the players and staff – as a sign of respect so it’s important for us, but we’re now doing fist bumps or elbow touches.

“We’re trying to do things the best we can and everyone has just been getting on with it.

“You always think it’s not going to be you that catches it, but it’s out there and it’s something that we’ve got to learn to live with over the next few months.

“If one of them has got it in our environment, they’re all going to get it and that’s the problem,” he added.

“We’ve already had mumps in the squad this season and I’ve found out now that one of the players has got chickenpox.

“I couldn’t write this season. It’s been unbelievable in terms of injuries, illnesses and problems out of our hands. It’s been a very good learning curve for me.”

Read more: Newport County boss Michael Flynn supports 'sensible' EFL suspension