Match Thread Home Versus Crawley Saturday 16th January- MATCH POSTPONED

Those are all things which are fairly small scale and provisions could surely be put in place. For example, laying some kind of carpeting from a specified drop-off/pick up location and things like salting the roads (which is surely likely to happen anyway (After all its not like the stadium is in an area where the only thing there is the stadium, emergency services will still need to access the area even without a match). The danger outside the ground is usually because there are thousands attending and its impossible to put in provisions for them to be safe but when including the players there will be under 100 people that seems controllable

 

The ref said the game was OK to be played since the pitch itself wasn't dangerous. It appears that it was the EFL who called off the game. But the EFL would normally only do that if the club (or possibly the SAG) had requested the postponement because of conditions surrounding the ground.

https://www.bradfordcityfc.co.uk/news/2021/january/postponed-bradford-city-v--crawley-town/

Have we 'done a Grimsby' having lost two of our star strikers in recent days?

 

I'm slightly suspicious. Normally, the club posts two articles on its website at least 48 hrs or so before the upcoming game. One, called the Opposition Guide and the other one called a Big Match Preview of the game. These have been published for all recent games, even for the those games which were subsequently postponed by the opposition, such as Scunny. On this occasion, neither articles were published. That's a bit of a mystery.

This is an extract from the EFL regs on the postponement of games ..

Q: Why are games postponed if the playing surface is playable?

It is the responsibility of each Club to ensure their stadium and car parks are safe to admit spectators on matchdays.

The home Club’s ground safety team will risk-assess the condition of the stadium footprint and the surrounding areas. It may not always be possible to ensure the safety of spectators in the event of extreme low temperatures, snow, ice and treacherous conditions.

On the day of the fixture, the ground safety team would liaise with the region’s SAG (Safety Advisory Group) and talk through their concerns around the safety of supporters.

The SAG would normally consist of the local policing authorities, the club’s ground safety team, local council members who specialise in different aspects of the community, and the ambulance service from that region.

The final decision would be out of the hands of the match referee on the day and would instead be based upon a recommendation from the Club’s Safety Advisory Group to the EFL.

Q: What can the club do to prevent the fixture from being postponed?

It is important that during periods of freezing conditions and heavy snowfall, Clubs make provisions to ensure the stadium, stadium footprint and its surrounds are in an appropriate condition to admit spectators.

This may include additional staff and/or volunteers to help clear snow or grit frozen surfaces. If the home club has any safety concerns ahead of a fixture they should make early contact with the EFL and the visiting team.

 

Maybe Leeds, as PL and EFL clubs are required to do, cleared the area around their ground to ensure it was safe?