Crawley-PNE Postponed

Tra la sorpresa generale, e dopo che l'ispezione effettuata nella mattinata di ieri aveva dato esito positivo per lo svolgimento del match del Broadfield Stadium, la partita di ieri sera tra Crawley e PNE è stata sospesa a causa del maltempo.

La decisione è apparsa subito insensata dato che tutte le altre partite in programma nella stessa serata in Inghilterra (in varie categorie, dalla Premier alla non-league) si sono regolarmente giocate e dato che è stata presa poco prima dell'inizio del match.

Particolare dispiacere da parte nostra per i fedeli tifosi del North End che si sono sobbarcati il viaggio da Preston in una fredda serata in settimana, quando è arrivata la notizia della sospensione non devono certo aver saltato di gioia... una vera beffa, una presa in giro considerando i costi e la fatica necessari per il viaggio senza contare ai permessi chiesti per uscire anticipatamente dal lavoro..

Grande onore a loro!

Proprio alcuni di questi tifosi hanno potuto testimoniare l'insensatezza della decisione dato che, piuttosto che tornarsene a casa, hanno preferito assistere al match di non-league tra Three Bridges e Corinthian Casuals... match che si svolgeva nella stessa città di Crawley!

Tifosi del PNE con tifosi dei Casuals

Oggi l'arbitro Simon Hooper ha spiegato le motivazioni della sua decisione spiegando che, nonostante l'esito positivo dell'ispezione avvenuta nella mattina, la forte pioggia caduta su Crawley durante la giornata e nella serata stessa aveva reso il campo impraticabile con la palla che non rimbalzava correttamente su un terreno che avrebbe potuto mettere a rischio anche i giocatori che sarebbero potuti incorrere in qualche grave infortunio.

“There was a pitch inspection at 9.30am this morning and rightly so. The pitch was fine then and playable and I have arrived here this evening and I would have kicked the game off now but with the forecast of the rain and the conditions as they are now with the ball not bouncing and heavy on the foot, my concern was as the game goes on the ball won’t roll and player safety is the most important thing.  

“Everybody’s nightmare is to start the game and not finish it, the players are all professionals, they all train all week for a game of football and those conditions are farcical and it won’t help anyone and it puts the players in jeopardy.  

“You don’t want to risk any players getting serious injuries and putting them out for the rest of the season. That is the most important thing and we have to tackle what is ahead of us now and make the correct decisions. 

“It is my fifth year as a referee in the Football League so occasions like this have come up before and recently we have had many postponements due to the weather but it is part of the job.”

La terna arbitrale

Westley ha dichiarato che l'arbitro ha preso la decisione corretta perchè innanzitutto si deve salvaguardare la sicurezza dei giocatori che scendono in campo pur dispiacendosi per i tifosi che hanno fatto il lungo viaggio da Preston inutilmente.

Queste le sue parole tratte dal sito pnefc.net:

 “It is very wet on the pitch, when you make long trips everybody moans and groans about late call offs but they have done everything they can to get the game on. 

“I can totally understand where the referee is coming from and why they have left the game on for so long it is one of those unfortunate things. 

“We didn’t want to travel or our fans have to travel down, it is sickening that the game is off so late but there is nothing they can do about it, they have done their best to get the game on. 

“The rain has fallen and it keeps on falling. There are dangerous patches on the pitch and it is the right decision.  

“There are patches on the pitch where players could easily lose their feet due to the surface and you don’t want to see a nasty injury to somebody so on that basis alone it is the correct decision. 

“To be honest you wouldn’t be able to get a game of football on the pitch, there are patches of water and it is not what we want. We obviously want to get the game on and we would love to get the game won but it is the right decision and nobody can do anything about it. 

“I live local to here and I had absolutely no thought in my mind that it would be called off, the weather has been ok all day and the rain has set in late on and it has made the surface difficult and dangerous. 

“It is a nightmare for the supporters and the players are gutted. The people who follow the Club and travel the country put in a tremendous amount of commitment and it is a sickening when something like this happens.  

“We went to Bury earlier this season and had a similar situation and rain was falling before kick-off and I have to say that I thought the pitch at Bury didn’t look dangerous, yes there were patches of water but the pitch didn’t look dangerous.  If you see a player get their foot stuck in a pot hole, turn their ankle and break it, everybody would be regretting that the game was played.” 

Westley