Beaton: I had no choice but to call off Kilmarnock match

Posted Thursday, February 28, 2019 by PA

Referee John Beaton admitted he had no option but to abandon the Ladbrokes Premiership encounter between Motherwell and Kilmarnock at Rugby Park after visiting fans left him in no doubt they could not see the game.

Heavy fog descended towards the end of a goalless first half and worsened during the interval and boos rang out when the action restarted.

Beaton called a halt within seconds and the game was abandoned 12 minutes later when it became apparent that conditions were not going to improve soon.

The referee said: “I think the Motherwell fans told us that they could not see the game and that was the first sign of a problem.

“Both assistant referees told me that they could not see the opposite side of the field.

“It was just difficult to see and the Motherwell manager pointed out that it was difficult to see the ball coming from a distance.

“Ultimately that becomes a safety issue and we have a responsibility to the paying fan and if they can’t see the game then it becomes a bit farcical. That was a big factor in the decision.”

Both sides have a free weekend but Kilmarnock assistant manager Alex Dyer ruled out playing this Saturday.

“I doubt it very much,” Dyer said. “Both teams have made arrangements to do certain things so I don’t think that’ll happen.”

Dyer added: “It was the right call, 100 per cent. You have to think of the safety of the players and the supporters.”

Motherwell manager Stephen Robinson, whose side had the best chances, said: “John made the right decision. The fans pay a lot to see football matches and they came out on a night like this.

“But you can’t play in that. You couldn’t see the other side of the pitch so for linesmen to make decisions it would have been difficult so there was no choice.

“I might not have been as accommodating if we’d been up 1-0 but we will get replay date sorted and go again.”