Boxing Day clash almost abandoned

Last updated : 26 December 2007 By The Chairman

The Latics game with Nottingham Forest was close to being abandoned after vandals had sabotaged one of the floodlights. Athletic did not know of the damage until fifteen minutes before the game was due to start when only three of the floodlight pylons powered up correctly. They then found that the electrical current to the floodlight tower had been cut leaving it impossible to be repaired. Both clubs discussed the situation with match officials and it was eventually decided that the game would be played using only three floodlight towers along with the lighting on the roof of the Main Stand.

Alan Hardy commented, "We obviously didn't discover any problem until the floodlights were switched on fifteen minutes before kick-off. Upon inspection, our electrician found the main power cable to one of the floodlight towers had been severed, and about two metres of the cable was missing. It could well have been people who thought they were going to make some money from the copper within the cable, but to be honest there would only have been about £5 worth of copper available after they'd gone to the trouble of stripping the cable. But the main problem is the damage caused and the cost of the repair work, which we hope to have completed in time for Saturday's game against Walsall."

"I advised the referee of the situation prior to kick-off, and at that stage we thought we may have been able to get the tower working for the start of the second half. Unfortunately, the damage was so great that wasn't possible. I spoke to the referee again at half-time alongside representatives of both teams, and everyone was happy to let the referee have the final say. I think he took the right approach in continuing with the game. Although there was a significant drop in light levels at the Rochdale Road End, the referee indicated after the game that not one player had made any complaint."