FOOTBALL SUSPENDED, AINTREE GRAND NATIONAL AT RISK ... NOW ALSO CANCELLED

The FA, Premier League, EFL and Barclays FA Women’s Super League and FA Women’s Championship have collectively agreed to postpone the professional game in England until 3 April at the earliest, due to Coronavirus. This action, which will be kept under constant review, has been taken due to the increasing numbers of Clubs taking steps to isolate their players and staff because of the COVID-19 virus. 

The suspension comes on a day of widespread sporting postponements worldwide.

• UEFA has postponed next week's Champions League and Europa League fixtures.
• England's Test cricket series in Sri Lanka has been cancelled.
• Golf's Players Championship in Florida was called off after one round.
• French football's governing body has suspended its top two leagues.
• The remainder of the Scottish football season has been postponed indefinitely.
• Formula E is suspended for two months, affecting races in Paris, Seoul and Jakarta.

We've been lucky enough to see Cheltenham NH Festival  survive this year but prospects for horse racing in particular the Aintree Grand National and the start of the Flat season will surely be in doubt now during the coming days and weeks, scenes reminiscent of the last round of foot and mouth outbreak which saw a shut down for a while. 

In Golf news The Masters has been postponed because of the coronavirus crisis. The first men's major championship of the year was due to begin on 9 April at Augusta National in Georgia. Wales' Six Nations match at home to Scotland on Saturday has also now been postponed because of the coronavirus outbreak. The two other round five scheduled games had already been postponed and no date has been confirmed to complete the 2020 Championship. The Welsh Rugby Union had insisted earlier on Friday the game would "go ahead as planned". But now the match has become the latest sporting event to fall foul of the coronavirus outbreak.

While all this news was coming out it's strange that the Rugby Union "Premiership Rugby Cup final" between Sale Sharks and Harlequins this Sunday will still be going ahead. "We will continue to work closely with government on a schedule for the remainder of the season, should the guidance on sporting events change," a statement said."We will keep updating our plans with new information as it is released, and ensure our clubs and fans are updated with developments as soon as they happen."

HORSE RACING CONTINUES BEHIND CLOSED DOORS FOR NOW, BUT THE AINTREE MEETING FEATURING THE GRAND NATIONAL IS ALREADY OFF

Naturally this means there's a lack of action to blog about, but we'll have to play it day by day and see if/when there is a resumption in the near future.