EXCLUSIVE Declan Rudd Preston North End column: I don’t think we should call a halt to the season

Obviously it is very worrying with the number of people who have been infected, with many people dying.

On a personal level, I have taken steps to minimise the risk to my family.

My missus and the kids have gone back down to Norwich to stay with her parents and left me up here alone.

I think that is the best thing to do especially as I am going out of the house and mixing with people.

There is the chance that I may pick up the virus, take it back home and give it to them.

That is the precaution we have taken, but we are in a time where nobody knows what is going to happen. We really cannot predict the future.

Personally, I think there is too much going on in all of the leagues to just write the season off.

I think I would just prefer to get the games played no matter what, even if it means having no fans in the stadium, but we are really in uncharted waters.

There is so much to play for, like ourselves who are going for the play-offs and promotion in the Championship.

A lot is at stake so if all of a sudden if the season is just stopped and written off, it would be a big blow to everybody. When you think about football, you get a lot of supporters in a confined space on the terraces and in the stands.

Even on the pitch, you have 22 players all coming into contact with each and off the pitch, there’s the managers and all the staff.

That leaves a lot of opportunity for the virus to be spread but in terms of the players and staff, precautions could be taken to help prevent that

Playing games behind closed doors would obviously mean there would be no atmosphere and it would be very strange.

But at least the season would be allowed to carry on.

If you suspend the season for a month, I am not sure how much that would help.

Say we stop playing for a month, at the end of that period, the disease will probably still be going around and where do you go from there?

Do you suspend it for another month, then that will lead to a delay for the following season.

There’s also the European Championships to think about – does that get cancelled? It really is going to have a knock-on effect on everything It’s a decision which I am glad I don’t have to make because there are going to be consequences and it’s certainly not going to be ideal either way.

We have just got to focus on what we can do until otherwise told.

After losing our last three league games, it’s important for our play-off challenge that we get back to winning ways at Luton this weekend.

Although they are in the relegation zone, they are in decent vein of form and are fighting hard to stay in the division. Having played them at our place earlier in the season, we know that they are a good side who can cause problems.

Kenilworth Road is an old-style ground, quite strange with one of the stands down one side of the pitch just containing hospitality boxes.

The fans there are capable of generating a good atmosphere, so it will be a tough game for us.