Town look set to face a return trip to Blackburn Rovers later in the season after this afternoon’s game was abandoned after 80 minutes due to a waterlogged pitch with the home side 1-0 up and with the Blues down to 10 men. Jacob Greaves was shown a straight red card four minutes after the break for hauling down Yuki Ohashi, then Rovers skipper Todd Cantwell netted a penalty on 59, but the heavy rain had made the game increasingly farcical the longer it progressed and in the 80th minute referee Stephen Martin took the players off and then 25 minutes later abandoned it entirely.

The Blues named the same XI that started last week’s 5-0 hammering of Sheffield United with the only switch of personnel in the 20-man squad Ashley Young, who missed the Blades game with a muscle strain, replacing Ben Johnson on the bench.

Alex Palmer was in goal behind a back four of Darnell Furlong, skipper Dara O’Shea, Greaves and Leif Davis.

Azor Matusiwa and Jens Cajuste were the midfield pairing behind Kasey McAteer, Chuba Akpom and hat-trick hero Jaden Philogene. Former Rovers loanee George Hirst started as the number nine.

Sammie Szmodics, who joined the Blues after an impressive two years at Ewood Park, and another one-time Blackburn loanee, Christian Walton, were among the Town subs.

For the Lancastrians, Australian international right-back Lewis Miller came in for Hayden Carter, who had picked up a knock.

Rovers were forced into a late change with Taylor Gardner-Hickman replacing Sidnei Tavares, who picked up an injury in the warm-up. No one was added to the bench.

Defender Sean McLoughlin was back on the bench following a suspension for a red card against Norwich.

The Blues officially unveiled their previously leaked third kit ahead of kick-off, a grey strip with a light blue trim, which is available from Planet Blue now.

With the game being played in persistent rain and standing water in areas of the pitch slowing the ball down, Town keeper Palmer was forced into the game’s first save in the fourth minute, Miller’s long throw bouncing awkwardly, the Blues number one having to back-pedal and tip over from under his bar.

The Blues created their first chance in the ninth minute via a slick move down the right. Hirst swept the ball wide to the right and McAteer sent a low cross towards the edge of the area from where Philogene hit a low first-time effort through to Balasz Toth in the Rovers goal.

Moments later, Hirst was shown the first yellow card of the game for a challenge on Yuri Ribeiro. The Scotland international looked aggrieved and with good cause having won the ball.

As the game moved towards the quarter hour, having been a scrappy affair largely due to the sodden conditions, Cajuste was fed in on the left of the box but Toth dived low to claim his ball across the six-yard box.

On 16, some sloppy passing on the Town left allowed Ryoya Morishita a run towards the area, the Japanese international’s shot hitting Greaves’s toe before Palmer saved down to his left and then claimed the loose ball ahead of Rovers captain and ex-Norwich man Todd Cantwell, who had been booed by the Blues support behind that goal.

A minute later, Gardner-Hickman was booked for hauling back Matusiwa on the Town right, the referee potentially making a rod for his own back with the early bookings given the conditions.

In the 27th minute, with the Blues not always finding it easy to play their football on the slow pitch, Philogene cut in from the left and hit a shot wide.

Soon after at the other end, Akpom slid in to make a superb block after the ball had fallen to Gardner-Hickman on the edge of the box.

On 35, Ryan Alebiosu flighted a cross from the right just beyond Ryan Hedges at the far post.

A minute later, Hirst will feel he should have given the Blues the lead against his old club. O’Shea played a great defence-splitting pass from deep to the right of the box. The Town striker was through one-on-one but Toth was quickly off his line to block. Hirst’s effort had been from a relatively tight angle but he will still feel he ought to have been celebrating his third goal of the season.

Cantwell volleyed over after a long throw from the right had been cleared on 43 with conditions continuing to have an impact on the quality of the game.

Just before an additional one minute was announced, the Blues added a bit of tempo their approach play, Davis cutting in from the left before hitting a left-foot shot which Toth batted away.

Town kept the ball in the final third and eventually Matusiwa hit an effort over from an angle on the right, the Dutchman clearly feeling he might have done better with his strike.

The players left the field with the rain continuing to fall steadily with the wet pitch having had a major effect on proceedings.

Town had tried their best to pass the ball around on the slow pitch but not always effectively with Blackburn’s best moments coming after they had seized on Blues errors.

The best chance of the half was Hirst’s with Palmer having saved a couple of efforts from distance at the other end.

As the second period got under way, the rain increased in intensity and four minutes after the restart the Blues were reduced to 10 men.

Ohashi chased a long ball down the middle and Greaves hauled the Japanese international down five yards outside the area. Referee Stephen Martin had little alternative but to show a straight red card, the Town defender’s first senior dismissal.

Greaves, who looked to have slipped as he sought to get back the right side of Ohashi, made half-hearted appeals before leaving the field.

Cantwell belted the resultant free-kick deep into the stand behind the goal, much to the amusement of the 3,984-strong travelling support, then on 54 the Blues swapped Akpom for a replacement centre-half, Cedric Kipre, who would have been making his league debut for the Blues following his loan switch from Reims in the summer.

Cajuste was booked for a foul on Morishita with Town sitting back in their own half of the field.

A bad start to the second half for the Blues got even worse in the 58th minute when Rovers were awarded a penalty.

Furlong appeared to inadvertently clip Cantwell’s heels as he looked to play the Blackburn attacker offside and referee Martin pointed straight to the spot. Furlong argued that the ex-Canaries forward had been offside and Matusiwa took his protests too far and was booked.

Cantwell took the kick himself and hit a powerful strike just inside Palmer’s left post giving the keeper no chance.

Blackburn made their first change in the 65th minute Ohashi making way for debutant Andri Gudjohnsen, before the Blues made a triple change with Hirst, Philogene and McAteer replaced by Ivan Azon, Jack Clarke and Szmodics, who received a warm welcome back from his old fans.

Szmodics almost immediately came close to a chance to level, Clarke crossing low from the left but the Irish international just couldn’t get to it only yards out from goal.

Town won a couple of corners, but it was mainly Blackburn and on 71 Gudjohnsen looped a header over the bar. Rovers replaced Morishita with McLoughlin and Ribeiro with Augustus Kargbo with conditions continuing to worsen and the ball sticking in standing water in more areas of the pitch.

On 74 Davis thought he should have been awarded a penalty when he burst into the area leaving defenders in his quite literal wake before being challenged. Referee Martin felt the ball had been won.

Kipre was booked for aquaplaning into Gudjohnsen with the game becoming increasingly farcical.

In the 77th minute, the Blues sought to break quickly but the ball stuck in the water as Clarke sought to bring it forward. Town did manage to get into the Rovers final third, however, but Davis’s cross was in front of Azon. Moments later, referee Martin went over to the touchline to have his electronic communication equipment adjusted, having previously swapped another unit in the first half, presumably due to the rain.

Three minutes later, with the ball getting stuck in puddles even more frequently, Martin took the players off, prompting large numbers of the home fans to leave. Subsequently, an announcement over the PA told fans to remain in their seats as the game hadn’t been abandoned at that stage.

But the rain continued to fall and if anything got heavier with the pitch becoming wetter and wetter as a result.

Referee Martin and his assistants emerged 13 minutes later and attempted to roll the ball across the surface but with little success, the Town support cheering each time it stuck or failed to bounce when dropped on the pitch.

Another 10 minutes later, the Town players and staff approached the Blues support, which had largely stayed despite the game having little chance of continuing, and applauded them.

Moments later, the clubs announced the game had been abandoned via social media, before confirmation from the PA, which was booed by the home support and cheered by the Town fans.

The decision was inevitable with the pitch, which were difficult from the start, having deteriorated and impossible by the time the players were taken off.

The official line is that the EFL board will make a decision on what happens next with a restaging appearing all but certain under FA rule 20(E)(iii) which states: “In the event of a competition match not being played or abandoned owing to causes over which neither club has control, it should be played in its entirety on a date to be mutually agreed by the two clubs and approved by the competition.”

Town will obviously be happier with the abandonment given the game situation, the conditions having played a significant role in the red card and also perhaps the penalty.

Blackburn: Toth, Alebiosu, Miller, Wharton, Ribeiro (Kargbo 71), Gardner-Hickman, Tronstad, Hedges, Cantwell (c), Morishita (McLoughlin 71), Ohashi (Gudjohnsen 65). Unused: Pears, Pickering, Gueye, De Neve, Montgomery.

Town: Palmer, Furlong, O’Shea (c), Greaves, Davis, Matusiwa, Cajuste, McAteer (Szmodics 65), Akpom (Kipre 54), Philogene (J Clarke 65), Hirst (Azon 65). Unused: Walton, Young, Taylor, Nunez, Walle Egeli. Referee: Stephen Martin (Staffordshire). Att: 16,032 (Town: 3,984).

Photo: TWTD

Vanisleblue2 added 23:49 - Sep 20 IMHO I feel like we play some of our best football with Wes Burns in the team, I cant wait for him to be fit Just my opinion but Greaves and O'Shea do not fill me with confidence... I would play Nunez, Egelli and Kipre at CB and possibly Young in the team as well. We spent a lot of money on Egelli and Nunez and they have great reputations..play them
0

bobble added 06:40 - Sep 21 I didnt realise that an imaginary god invented by by people made it rain, but clearly many on here accept this .... stange times we live in.....
0

grow_our_own added 07:50 - Sep 21 I think it's just an expression Bobble, not a theological assertion. Lucky because of a weather event = God is on your side
1

BobbyBell added 09:05 - Sep 21 I think the hint was there when the players entered the changing rooms and found water wings with their kit. Seriously though the forecast was for heavy rain until 1am so on seeing the conditions and the forecast of continuing rain the ref was a plonker for letting the game start.
0

blueboy1981 added 09:25 - Sep 21 On a Rain Drenched Pitch - you HAVE to adapt and change from this Pandemic of ‘passing out from the back’ - Where are you McKenna ?? and ever heard of a Plan B ??
0

scorpioblue added 10:09 - Sep 21 On the plus side … love the new 3rd Shirt :)
0

Blogs 297 bloggers

Ipswich Town Polls