Burnley have joined 18 other Premier League clubs by closing their training grounds as a result of the Coronavirus. 

The Clarets had been preparing as usual amid the suspension of football but have now made the decision to send players home for the next few weeks, at the very least. 

Sean Dyche and company had come in for criticism in the midst of their refusal to initially follow suit with other clubs. But that seems a bit harsh. 

For starters, there were no rules or regulations that said football clubs must suspend training. That was simply ambiguity from the Government. Outside of football, many people were still going to work, as normal, and lots of people were still going to the pub. The severity of the situation had seemed to go over the head of many people. 

Burnley probably felt obliged to continue working with many professions still open for business. The success of the club is built on the players being incredibly fit; Dyche takes pride in the fact that his players are used to running more miles than their opponents. 

The severity of this pandemic has escalated really quickly. Only a fortnight ago, the advice was to simply wash hands thoroughly. The Government then tried to enforce the notion of Herd Immunity before realising the callous nature of that decision. They backtracked and nicely asked the public to stay indoors. That wasn't working so we're now in the midst of a full-scale lockdown. It has been tough to keep up!

Not faultless

Maybe there was a bit of naivety in it. The kind of "it'll be reight" attitude is something that many would probably have expected from the no-nonsense Dyche, and his fellow Englishman Chris Wilder, who had also been training as normal with Sheffield United, according to the i. 

Nonetheless, until rules are put into practice, people can argue say that they have every right to go about their business in their own way. However, when lives are at stake and morality is on the line, football really does come a distant second. 

The fact that Burnley have now reigned in their training sessions is absolutely a good thing. Fighting Covid_19 will be a national effort and that needs everybody to contribute to the cause.