Portsmouth promotion rivals Fleetwood put non-playing staff on furlough leave - including manager Joey Barton

The decision was taken by owner Andy Pilley as the League One side, like the rest of football, tries to deal with the impact of coronavirus.

No elite level football in England will be played until April 30 at the earliest.

But even that date looks very unlikely under the circumstances.

Such uncertainty has contributed to the Cody Army taking such a difficult decision, which does not include the players.

Although the club have assured all staff that their jobs are still there for them on the return to normality.

Meanwhile, the powers that be at Fleetwood will sort out the 80-per-cent payment that is available from the government.

Barton’s side currently sit fifth in the table – one place below Pompey on goal difference.

Their last outing came at Fratton Park, when the visitors held the Blues to 2-2 draw on Tuesday, March 10.

Pilley’s decision follows a similar move by MK Dons chairman Pete Winkelman, with Sunderland putting a number of their non-playing staff on furlough leave.

Pompey chief executive Mark Catlin told The News this week that the Fratton Park club remains in a strong financial position.

The Blues are continuing to pay all staff in full after the club went into ‘hibernation’ mode in the face of the Covid-19 outbreak.