Ipswich Town’s League One season will continue despite the new coronavirus lockdown measures introduced by the government.

Boris Johnson’s address to the nation saw a return to the blanket ‘stay at home’ message while schools were also closed, though one of a number of exceptions means elite sport is able to continue.

That means Ipswich will return to action when Swindon Town visit on Saturday evening, with Paul Lambert’s men taking to the field for the first time in 25 days after their last four matches were postponed due to positive coronavirus tests.

The Blues themselves have been hit by 11 cases in recent weeks, including Lambert and general manager Lee O’Neill, at a time when positive cases have been rising across the country, throughout football and especially in League One.

The festive fixture list was hit hard, with a significant number of matches postponed, which has led to the EFL introducing mandatory testing for their three divisions for the first time since the season kicked off in September.

The Ipswich Town players were swabbed on Monday as part of an EFL-wide test date, planned several weeks ago, which will see all 72 clubs tested at the start of this week. The results of those tests are expected in the coming days.

It’s likely to be the start of a twice-weekly testing programme throughout the EFL.