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Club tackling frozen pitch ahead of FA Cup tie

Aimee Dexterand
Tom Jackson,Cambridgeshire
News imageTom Jackson/BBC Ian Darler is in the middle. He has a grey moustache and is wearing a blue jumper and a black T-shirt. He is stood on a football pitch which has a light layer of snow covering it.Tom Jackson/BBC
Ian Darler helps to maintain the condition of Cambridge United's pitch

Cambridge United FC says it is taking "every precaution" ahead of its FA Cup tie after a frozen pitch saw its last match postponed.

Weather warnings have been in place across parts of Cambridgeshire, and the club was forced to call off Sunday's League Two home fixture against Grimsby after a pitch inspection.

The club is due to host Birmingham City at the Abbey Stadium in the third round on Saturday at 17:45 GMT.

A spokesperson for the United said: "Our groundstaff are working hard ahead of the weekend's match, taking every precaution to make the pitch playable, including using heated lamps and other measures."

News imageTom Jackson/BBC Grass on a football pitch has a thin layer of snow and frost covering it. In the background is a stand in the football stadium which says COFC.Tom Jackson/BBC
A home game on Sunday was cancelled after the pitch failed an inspection

A yellow weather warning for snow was issued for parts of the county from 18:00 on Thursday until 12:00 on Friday.

The Met Office said Storm Goretti was likely to bring heavy snow which could lead to disruption and difficult travelling conditions.

Ian Darler, stadium manager at the Abbey, said frost sheets had been put over the pitch ahead of the match last Sunday.

"What we did not anticipate as we took the sheets off [was that] it was so cold with the wind chill that within the hour parts of the pitch which were playable started to go the other way," he said.

The last time a game was called off there was 2010.

News imageMet Office Part of a map shows places in the Midlands and East with a yellow colour indicating a warning for snowMet Office
A Met Office map shows swathes of England under the yellow warning for snow

Darler said the upcoming match could only go ahead if the weather improved, noting that other clubs were already taking similar measures.

"We are going to do our best to improve the situation as best we can," he said.

The club said it was "closely monitoring" the forecast and weather warnings.

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