Chatham Town captain Jack Evans is desperately hoping the football season can continue.

Evans scored two goals on Saturday as Chats beat Canterbury City 3-0 to extend their lead at the top of the Southern Counties East Premier Division table.

There were five games off in the SCEFL at the weekend because of Covid, while the professional game was also badly hit, leading some to ask for a pause in play.

Chats were top of the tree when football was suspended last season because of the pandemic and that campaign was eventually scrapped. They were also chasing promotion the previous year when football was halted.

Evans doesn’t want the same thing to happen, but admits they are fearful.

He said: “The boys want to carry on and we do the right things that we are told and people respect each other.

“We want football to continue, it is a breather from everything else that is happening outside of football, you can blank everything else out. We just have to do what we are told but hopefully we can carry on playing.

“Everyone will be devastated across the board if we can’t continue to play. There has been a lot of hard work put in across the leagues.

“Nobody knows what is going to happen, do they? It is a bit up in the air and we just hope it can continue.”

Chatham dominated the weekend game against City, taking the lead through Evans after he was slipped in on goal and he added a second shortly after the interval with a well-placed free-kick. Ryan Hayes scored a third for the Chats with nine minutes left.

They are now four points clear of second-placed Sheppey United, but the island side have two games in hand over their Medway rivals.

Chatham travel to Kennington on Monday before a big promotion clash at Maidstone Road against The Ites the following week.

Evans said: “We could take it out of Sheppey’s hands a bit if we can get the points off them on that day, those games in hand wouldn’t matter. With a bit of luck the outside world will stay safe and we can carry on playing football.

“It has been horrible the last few years, last year especially.

“We were top and flying, we had only lost one, we had a good cup run and it was sad for everyone, including the fans.

“Everyone wants to go and watch a game around this time and hopefully, fingers crossed, everyone stays safe and we can play on after Christmas.”