Dangerous travelling conditions as a result of Storm Malik resulted in all of the weekend’s Breedon Highland League fixtures being postponed.
The decision was taken early on Saturday morning following a meeting of the division’s office bearers.
Fraserburgh v Wick Academy at Bellslea was first to be postponed with the decision then taken to call off the other eight games.
Strong winds resulted in power outages and roads being blocked by fallen trees.
Highland League secretary Rod Houston said: “The process was quite straightforward, from Friday morning we were watching the forecast and weather warnings had been issued.
“We were also conscious that Wick Academy were travelling to Fraserburgh which required them to leave early in the morning.
“For that particular fixture we knew we would have to make an early decision or see how far down the road we risked taking Wick.
“But it was clear very early that the likelihood of the wind easing significantly was remote.
“And the risks of travel were sufficiently significant to say that it shouldn’t happen.
“That was an early call and geographically all our games were in the east half of the league, which was getting hit hard with trees down on roads and power outages.
“We pulled the office bearers together, we had a look at the situation, an update on power outages and an update on traffic.
“We realised that we might be able to get players in grounds for 3pm and pitches might be playable, but the risks in terms of travel were unacceptable.
“The other risk was if there was a power outage at a game that’s a difficult situation to deal with.
“We came together and realised an early decision for everyone was how it would be.”
Safety of everyone involved was paramount
Houston says wind is a particularly tricky element to deal with when it comes to postponing fixtures.
He also added that the safety of spectators trying to get to and from matches was also taken into consideration when calling off the card.
Houston said: “The trouble when dealing with wind is that it’s difficult to work out what will happen.
“You know when rain’s coming, you know when snow’s coming and you know if frost is in the ground.
“But wind can rise and fall in no time at all.
“We were looking on Friday saying ‘if this collapses in on itself overnight then we don’t have a problem, but if it doesn’t collapse in itself then we do have a problem.’
“Of course it didn’t collapse in on itself, it’s a difficult thing wind, to be sure if the system will sustain itself.
“We have to err on the side of safety and also remember that not only are you trying to get teams into grounds but spectators who want to see the game.
“And you have to think ‘are these conditions we want people to be going to games in?’
“It’s interesting looking down the east coast and Montrose managed to play but Forfar and Arbroath both went.
“Glebe Park was playable but we couldn’t get Nairn County to Brechin safely.
“The conditions might have spoiled the game, but the context around getting to the game is very important.”
