Where does fire postponement leave Southampton's season?

The fire was still blazing and had been for four hours when first team staff and executives began arriving at St Mary's in the late afternoon. 

The smoke expelled could be seen from Winchester, as videos of the affected building's collapse surfaced on the internet. 

Emergency service vehicles packed the roads around the stadium late in the night with servicemen and women expected to work through most of today too. 

There will be an assessment of any smoke damage to the stadium in the coming days ahead of hosting Sunderland on Saturday. 

Emergency services outside St Mary's Stadium (Image: PA)

No dispute can be had over the decision to postpone the match with the safety of supporters and staff paramount. 

First and foremost, we hope that nobody was hurt as a result of the fire in the industrial estate outside St Mary's Stadium and commend the emergency services for their response. 

That is a given, as too is extending thoughts to the Preston fans who had already made their way down from Lancashire on Wednesday. 

A five-hour journey there and the expense can be worth it when you can support your team at the end of it but, otherwise, not so much. 

Local side AFC Totton offered travelling supporters free entry to their Southampton Senior Cup semi-final tie against Folland Sports so they might still have seen some balls kicked.

On social media, one group of unlucky Preston fans reported their coach breaking down shortly after turning around and heading back North. 

Nobody will be asking those individuals for the lottery numbers this week - that is for certain. 

But for Saints, they must now schedule two fixtures into what is only four remaining midweek slots until the end of the season. 

Saints were already without a fixture next Saturday due to Leicester City's progression to the FA Cup quarter-final, with the international break following that. 

Those four available fixture slots are the midweeks of weeks commencing Monday, March 11, April 15, April 22 and April 29.

They will play their final 10 games in the space of only 36 days, culminating in the visit to promotion rivals Leeds United. 

Southampton's visit to Leeds United could become a playoff final (Image: PA)

It could be that Saints visit Leicester and Leeds, who could well be first and second, in the final week of the Championship season. 

Whatever happens, after this period of rest that follows the Sunderland game, it is going to need one almighty effort from Russell Martin's men.

One positive is that injured winger Ryan Fraser will be afforded more recovery time and he is expected back at the end of the month.

Martin, speaking ahead of the visit from Preston, made that same observation regarding the Leicester postponement and now it is twofold. 

Kyle Walker-Peters was also ruled out of the contest with the defender expected to return on Saturday for Sunderland.

The minutes he missed at the 4-3 win on Birmingham City were the first in the league this season, having gone off injured at Liverpool.

He should be fit for the rearranged date - although the toll the added congestion takes is not yet known. 

None of it is a given, though, and grounds staff will be put hard to work to make St Mary's playable for the weekend. 

Martin wanted to use this week to leave Saints in "a good place" ahead of the run-in - Saturday was and remains a must-win.