Bradford City v Carlisle United League Two game postponed because of frozen pitch

The Bantams have now lost five Saturday matches in December and January, which will mean a cluttering up of fixtures later in the season.

The game at Gilingham on December 10 and the following week's home match against Rochdale were both postponed because of frozen pitches during the December cold snap.

To compound their bad luck, January matches against Walsall and Stockport County have had to be rearranged because City's opponents were still involved in the FA Cup.

Fortunately, this season's League Two season has been elongated because of the World Cup and anyway manager Mark Hughes thinks the rhythm of Saturday-Tuesday games will be better for his team as they look to build momentum in the second half of the season to lift them from their present seventh position into the play-off places.

He has the benefit of one of the biggest squads in the division, and has been able to add six new faces so far in January.

The English season has been extended by a week at either end to make room for the Qatar World Cup but unlike the Premier League and Champioinship, League One and Two clubs continued to play through it.

Doncaster Rovers' match against Tranmere Rovers was postponed on Friday because of a frozen pitch, as is York City’s trip to Eastleigh in the Conference.

Huddersfield Town’s Championship match at Blackpool is also off.