Doncaster Rovers boss has concerns over demands on players as Covid-postponed games are rearranged

Moore revealed Rovers will be presented with a relentless calendar through to the end of March if tentative plans come to fruition for the rearranging of the four fixtures the club was forced to cancel due to the coronavirus crisis.

And he says he is already concerned for the well-being of his players as he plots how to guide the squad through the demanding second half of the campaign.

“You’re looking from the middle of January right through to the first week in April could be relentless potentially,” he told the Free Press.

“We’re waiting to hear back from the EFL but if we’ve got to play the games in the time period we have then it’s going to be a real busy period.

“We thought the first bit was busy but the second bit is going to be extremely busy.

“The problem is you’re running out of time so the period you’ve got to fit them in is a really small window.

“We can fit them in but it’s just the length of what the players are going to be expected to play week in week out, it’s the wellbeing and welfare of the players you have to look at.

“That’s going to be a real major issue when sorting these fixtures out.”

The EFL will insist that the fixtures are rearranged at the earliest possible opportunity in case of further postponements for weather, international breaks or more Covid-related cancellations.

Clubs’ potential cup obligations complicate matters when attempting to pencil in rearranged fixtures.

Rovers’ trip to Peterborough United has been rearranged for March 23.

Moore fears Covid-19 will continue to have an effect on the fixture list in the weeks to come as the virus strikes at other League One clubs.

“It’s not just affecting us, it’s affected everybody,” he said.

“For the grand scale of the future, we can only wait and see.

“It just goes to show right across League One, there’s probably been 75 per cent of us wiped out. Hopefully everyone is isolating and we’re getting on the back end of it but we’ll wait and see.”

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