Snow joke for Accies and Terrors

There appeared no threat to the fixture until around 2.30pm when snow began to fall so heavily, it completely obscured the pitch markings.It showed little sign of abating and a decision to abandon the game was soon taken.Accies secretary Scott Struthers explained the club's undersoil heating system was unable to counteract such heavy snowfall at such short notice."There's nothing you can do if it happens that late," he said.Supporters were issued with free vouchers to keep for the rearranged fixture, with those unable to attend given the option of claiming a full refund.Safety concerns were also behind the abandonment, with fears over the condition of the roads around New Douglas Park.Referee Iain Brines, who revealed he had never had to abandon a game before, said: "The safety of players is obviously paramount in these decisions."Talking to the police, also the conditions outwith the stadium ground is also taken into account."It was decided best for everybody involved that we don't proceed with the game."The police expressed concerns about the main routes into Hamilton and also outwith."United boss Craig Levein - who will hold talks with the Scottish Football Association over the Scotland vacancy - described the abandonment as "100% correct"."It was actually quite deep, the snow. The ball wasn't running without gathering snow on it."The forecast was snow for two hours. It doesn't take a genius to work out that maybe it was the right decision."Levein, who has had his run-in with officials in the past, joked: "I thought the referes had a good game actually!"He added: "We're laughing about it but there wasn't any snow at half-past."I came back down the tunnel at quarter-to an I couldn't believe it."Levein was hoping to see his side make amends for Tuesday's 3-0 home defeat to Rangers."It was a great opportunity for us to get Tuesday out of our system and that's the biggest disappointment for me."I sensed a real keenness from the players to atone for their disappointing display."

Source: Team_Talk