Crawley Town v Charlton Athletic: Game postponed 20 minutes before kick off due to waterlogged pitch
Crawley Town’s game with Charlton Athletic has been called off due to a waterlogged pitch just 20 minutes before kick off.
The Reds beat the Addicks at the Valley 2-1 at the beginning of December but both club’s fortune’s have changed since that night.
After a morning of high winds and heavy rain, puddles had formed on the sidelines and water laid on the pitch. Groundsman Ben Harwood and his staff worked hard to clear water from the pitch and the referees had a look and rolled a ball to see what it was like at 1.30pm.
They then announced a pitch inspection at 2.15pm. Rain is forecast for the next two hours.
The club then tweeted at 2.23pm: “The referee is going to take a further look at the pitch ahead of kick-off as the rain continues to pour here in West Sussex. We will update fans with the result of the second pitch inspection at the earliest possible opportunity.”
Then at 2.40pm the game was called off. The club tweeted: “Unfortunately, this afternoon’s match against Charlton has been postponed owing to a waterlogged pitch at the Broadfield Stadium.
“We apologise for any inconvenience caused and will be back in touch with more communication regarding tickets in due course.”