Sunderland promotion rivals fear League One is running out of time to complete season

Portsmouth chief executive Mark Catlin says time will be against them, even if they can convince the rest of League One to play on

League One clubs could run out of time to complete their season even if they decide to play on, according to one of Sunderland's promotion rivals.

Clubs are expected to vote next week to decide whether to complete the season or cut short the campaign, with the EFL proposing to settle the league table based on unweighted points-per-game if the fixtures cannot be played due to the Covid-19 crisis.

Sunderland are one of a number of clubs that want to fulfil their fixtures, with Portsmouth also in that group.

But Pompey chief executive Mark Catlin fears that time is against them, even if they can convince enough clubs to side with them to win the argument.

EFL chairman Rick Parry has previously said it would take 56 days to complete the season - including the play-offs - and that realistically it would have to be finished by July 31.

Even that deadline is reliant on the goodwill of players - many of whom will be out of contract at the end of June - to play during July, a month for which they would normally receive a severance payment.

Clubs estimate it would take two-to-three weeks of training for players to get back up to speed before playing again.

However if a decision was made as early as Monday, that would be just 61 days before the July 31 deadline - which would not leave enough time for that training period, plus the 56 days Parry believes is necessary to complete the season.

Catlin said: "Hopefully we will find out next week, but by that time we will be into June and there are still two-to-three weeks required to get players back to training – then you have 56 days to complete.

"I am not sure how we then manage to get this done beyond July 31, which I feel has always been the backstop in regards of player contracts.

"You can keep them until June 30 – however, there is then a month's severance.

"We have always worked on the assumption that, with the goodwill of players. they will carry on during that month because they cannot sign for another club.

"Asking them to stay on for a month is one thing, asking them to go into a new deal beyond July 31 for a limited amount of time when they risk injury is something completely different.

"I am not talking specifically about Pompey. Speaking generally, take a club who have a player whose contract ends in June, but is willing to play on into July because of the severance pay.

"Asking them to go beyond that could be a problem because they may have already done another deal with another club.

"I think it is a big ask, especially when those players are risking injury."