OXFORD United are among a group of Sky Bet League One promotion contenders committed to finishing the season, according to Peterborough United chairman Darragh MacAnthony.

EFL clubs are due to hold a meeting tomorrow morning to discuss ways at how the campain - suspended since March 13 due to coronavirus - can be concluded.

While there have been growing calls from some clubs to scrap the remaining games and use a formula to decide promotion and relegation, U's boss Karl Robinson has said they will be voting to play on if it is safe.

And MacAnthony has tonight tweeted the U's are among six top-ten clubs who have agreed they want to complete the fixtures.

Niall McWilliams, United's managing director, told the club's website: "Karl said it in his interviews last week: we want to play.

"Obviously that’s not going to be easy and I don’t envy the EFL trying to find a way to make it happen but as a club we would love to finish the job that we started all those months ago and try to win promotion on the pitch.

“It feels like society is slowly taking the first steps back towards normal life and that inevitably means people asking when we are going back.

“Everyone sees the speculation and the different scenarios and we spoke to a number of clubs this week just to try and gauge opinion. Our message to them, and to the fans remains the same. If a safe way can be found for football to return then we will be ready.”

The EFL announced yesterday after a board meeting clubs could not train until at least May 25.

David Bottomley, chief executive at 19th-placed Rochdale, believes that rules out the possibility of getting the season finished by July 31, after which out-of-contract players will simply leave and "integrity goes out of the window".

"Our view now is that you have to end the season," he told the PA news agency.

"The key date all along for the last five weeks has been May 18. If players could return to training then, there was a chance to conclude the season by the end of July, which is what the EFL wanted to do to avoid the issues of players out of contract.

"Even that was going to be difficult because a player's contract ends at the end of June, but the case has always been that unless that player finds another club you have to pay them to the end of July.

"So the last four weeks is almost like a redundancy payment effectively.

"The word that has been bandied from the start by (EFL chairman) Rick Parry is integrity of the competition. I think integrity goes out the window on August 1 because all the players are gone.

"And how can football possibly, from a moral point of view, even consider returning to training and playing right now when we're still not adequately testing people who have got much more importance in life, like NHS workers?" 

However, the Premier League have announced short-term extensions could be agreed, potentially paving the way for the EFL to follow suit.

Also today, plans to resume football progressed on Thursday, according to Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Oliver Dowden.

Dowden chaired a meeting with chief executives from the Premier League, EFL and Football Association to discuss plans to restart the season next month.

And he said: "Today's positive meeting I hosted with the football authorities progressed plans for the resumption of the professional game in England.

"We all agreed that we will only go ahead if it is safe to do so and the health and welfare of players, coaches and staff comes first."

The minister added that it is now over to the respective governing bodies on how best to deliver a restart.

"The government is opening the door for competitive football to return safely in June," Dowden added.

"This should include widening access for fans to view live coverage and ensure finances from the game's resumption supports the wider football family.

"It is now up to the football authorities to agree and finalise the detail of their plans, and there is combined goodwill to achieve this for their fans, the football community and the nation as a whole.

"The Government and our medical experts will continue to offer guidance and support to the game ahead of any final decision which would put these plans into action."