Early postponements agitate fans

The arctic weather which has left Britain shivering for much of 2010 led to a swathe of cancellations last weekend with just two Premier League matches going ahead along with a further seven in the Football League.

Among those in the top flight to fall victim to the weather was Hull City's meeting with Chelsea after Humberside Police expressed concerns on Friday afternoon about the safety of supporters trying to get to and from the KC Stadium. The game was one of several in England to perish due to the treacherous state of the surrounding area rather than the pitch, which was in perfect condition thanks to the Tigers' undersoil heating.

Michael Brunskill, spokesman for the Football Supporters'

Federation, admits safety has to be a paramount concern when assessing whether a game goes ahead.

However, he also believes the recent practice of calling off games up to 48 hours before the scheduled kick-off, as happened in several instances last week, is a concern.

Brunskill told the Yorkshire Post: "The authorities have to be cautious but there is a danger that things are going too far.

"Supermarkets stay open without a problem during cold weather but getting to a football stadium is often deemed too dangerous.

"There has been an increasing trend recently whereby games are being called off very, very quickly by the police or councils and it is a worrying trend.

"Personally, I can't remember a lot of games being called off so early even five years ago – especially when the pitch was playable, as was the case last week at several grounds that have undersoil heating.

"Of course, there has to be a balance struck between giving reasonable notice of a game being postponed and blindly holding on until the last minute to call it off.

"You don't want situations like last week when a lot of the Bolton fans had already arrived in London by the time their game at Arsenal was postponed. But it still seems some games were called off too hastily."

The decision to postpone Hull's fixture with Chelsea was a frustrating one for the staff at the KC Stadium who had worked hard to get the game on.

Tigers' chairman Adam Pearson said: "In my opinion, the stadium was playable but the police took the decision on Friday afternoon that they were not prepared to police the fixture in the conditions. So, that was that.

"I am led to believe there was still a problem by Saturday morning with regards the car parks, though this was mainly caused by the early kick-off due to Sky wanting to show the game. It may have been different at 3pm.

"In an ideal world, we could have told the fans the game was on but that the surrounding areas were a slight problem so they should exercise extreme caution.

"But, unfortunately, life is not like that with the authorities instead erring on the side of caution. I thought we may have been able to wait until Saturday morning but they were adamant.

"It was a shame. I am not sure if there is ever a good time to play Chelsea but maybe this was it with so many of their players being away on international duty."

Even before the weekend,

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was voicing his own concerns about how a "fear factor" was playing a big part in matches being postponed when "there is no real need for it".

FSF spokesman Brunskill believes the Gunners' chief has a point, adding: "We would like to see games being treated on an individual basis. It is an issue for society as much as football.

"We live in a society where there is a growing attitude that the authorities know best, as if people can't be trusted to make their own minds up.

"The problem is we live in an increasingly litigious society and maybe that is why the authorities are exercising such caution. If anyone slips, then they could look to sue for compensation.

"The clubs don't want games off due to the subsequent loss of revenue, while the fans find themselves having to take time off work later in the season to attend a game that has been rearranged for a midweek date."