Blues boss Kieran McKenna says Town will get to the truth of the confusion surrounding referee Bobby Madden’s claim he couldn’t abandon and then restage this afternoon’s 2-1 defeat at Oxford once the game had passed the 75-minute mark.
As reported earlier, both managers were happy to abandon the match with the players struggling to see the ball in the thick fog but Madden, who has begun officiating in the EFL this season having previously refereed in Scotland for 20 years and in FIFA competitions for more than a decade, told them that if he did after 75 minutes had passed then the current scoreline, 1-1, would stand.
However, McKenna says club secretary Stuart Hayton has informed him that the EFL rulebook says nothing of the sort.
"Myself and Karl both told our concerns to the fourth official at the start of the second half, that we couldn't see the ball and it was looking like there were mistakes on the pitch on account of that. We spoke to the referee on the 74th minute spoke to the fourth official,” McKenna said in his iFollow Ipswich post-match interview.
"Between the staff and players the feeling was let's come back and fight another day in proper conditions.
"At that stage the referee said that because the 75-minute mark had passed the result would have to stand, there would have to be a draw and there would be no replay.
"In those conditions, my team, we want to win and we thought we would take our chances that we can get the winner.
"The frustration and the confusion is that our club secretary has told us that is not the rules and there is nothing in the rulebook about that.
"We will address it and get to the truth of what it was. I don't think the game should have been played in those conditions, but we can't get it back.”