Altrincham’s promotion push has been put on hold after the National League suspended its fixture list until the beginning of next month at the earliest.

In-form Alty were hoping to make it four straight wins at York City on Saturday, only for the game to be called off late on Friday night following illness in both camps.

The postponement was followed by an announcement from the National League on Monday afternoon that, in view of Government measures over the coronavirus outbreak, it was ‘not practical for fixtures to be fulfilled in the immediate future’ and the competition would be suspended until at least April 3.

The best Alty could hope for would be to resume their programme against Gloucester City at The J.Davidson Stadium on Saturday, April 4, with a further eight fixtures to fit in, but that is looking unlikely, given the increasing disruption caused by the virus.

Acknowledging the league had little option but to suspend games, Alty’s board issued a statement vowing to do everything they can to help the most vulnerable sections of the community.

It read: “We recognise there may be a serious impact on some members of the Altrincham FC family, and therefore the club and community are working hand-in-hand to see how we can support the most vulnerable of our neighbours and friends.

“We will be pulling together support packages for distribution to those most impacted and looking to provide more practical help where we can.”

Addressing the inevitable drop in income without gate receipts, the statement added: “There is no underestimating the impact of the loss of revenue. We have seen on the forum some suggestions for helping us out, and we thank you very much for this gesture.

“One way you can help us in the short term, is to join Alty Rewards. This scheme, which was launched earlier this year, allows you to donate an amount to the club every month, thus helping us with our cash flow.”