Hartlepool United and National League clubs wait for next steps as EFL reveal ambitious plans - plus Ebbsfleet make controversial suggestion

All football has been suspended indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Hartlepool United, who this week confirmed further redundancies at Victoria Park, face an anxious wait with no matchday income coming in.

While clubs wait for further guidance from National League bosses, the EFL has told league clubs that their respective seasons could be completed in a 56-day timeframe – with games set to go behind closed doors - when it is safe to resume.

In a letter to all clubs currently playing in the Championship, League One and League Two, EFL chairman Rick Parry has revealed his plan.

The EFL has also told all league clubs NOT to return to training until May 16 at the earliest – but have pledged to give sides adequate time to prepare for the resumption of the campaign.

The Pools squad are all maintaining their fitness levels at home during the enforced break, as clubs wait to hear on the next steps.

It comes as National League rivals Ebbsfleet United - currently fourth-bottom and in a relegation spot - say they believe cancelling the current season would be the ‘fairest and most logical, common sense solution.’

The club issued a lengthy update to supporters, part of the statement read: "A cancellation of 2019/20 season, and reboot with the same teams in the league for 2020/21, is in our view the fairest and most logical, common sense solution.

"If the EFL require a club to make up the numbers next season then we don’t believe there would be any National League club who would begrudge a club being promoted up to the EFL.

“We certainly wouldn’t and would support that. Obviously one or two clubs will be disappointed if they were league leaders at the time of the shutdown or sitting clear in automatic promotion positions; however, that is one or two clubs.

“With so much football left (eight or nine matches and a tough play-off series of games) it is very difficult to take seriously complaints of clubs that sit in or within reach of the play-off places should they claim they are being denied promotion if cancellation occurs.

"On the flip side, obviously some clubs might be considered very lucky to avoid relegation in such a scenario.

“However, at a time when kindness and a compassionate lean should exist as much as possible, surely denying a positive (promotion) is the less damaging option compared to confirming a negative (relegation)?”

Pools are currently ninth in the National League table, two places and three points adrift of a play-off spot having played 39 games before the season was suspended indefinitely.

Clubs now face an anxious wait to see what the next steps will be, with players' contracts due to run out later this month.