It was a real shame, but sadly there was absolutely no choice but to call off the Grimsby game today. The groundstaff had worked hard to ensure that the pitch coped with the rain it took in yesterday, and at 1.15 it looked in really good nick. What happened next was out of everyone’s hands though.

The lightning came first, and a couple of the flashes were spectacular. Steve Tomassen walked out of the tunnel to have a look at the pitch, the whole ground lit up and he bolted back to the safety of the changing room! By now the roof of the stands were rattling with a torrential downpour and long, rolling peals of thunder reverberated around the stadium.

Once the rain eased, the pitchside talk was mostly of astonishment that so much rain could have fallen so quickly. The pitch had soaked up so much and now was absolutely sopping wet. At first it looked like the touchlines were the worst affected, but a stroll across the pitch revealed that it was soaking all over. Around the Kop penalty area was particularly wet.

The officials had been quick to make their way onto the pitch and it didn’t take long before the managers joined them. With the rain still falling and no sign it would abate, it was clearly a pretty easy decision. At 2.30 the rain was as heavy as it had been since the initial downpour: clearly the right decision had been made, although that was naturally no consolation to the frustrated Grimsby fans who had travelled so far for nothing.

Of course, it’s not only the Grimsby fans who are affected by the postponement. If you were going to donate to the fund-raisers who were rallying around Jacko I urge you to do so online: you can donate through PayPal via wxmfc2000@tesco.net: have a look at the first post here for more details.