<
>

Blackpool match abandoned after protests will not be replayed

play
Lambert: Blackpool have nothing to lose (1:02)

Paul Lambert says Championship strugglers Blackpool will be a dangerous side for his Aston Villa team to face in the FA Cup third round. (1:02)

Blackpool's abandoned match against Huddersfield at Bloomfield Road last Saturday will not be replayed, the Football League has announced.

The Seasiders' final fixture of the season was halted 48 minutes in when supporters poured on to the pitch in protest at the Tangerines' chairman Karl Oyston and, after staging a sit-in demonstration in the centre circle for over an hour, referee Mick Russell eventually called the fixture off.

In a statement issued on Monday evening, the Football League said: "The Football League can confirm that Blackpool and Huddersfield Town will not be required to finish or replay their Sky Bet Championship fixture that was abandoned after 48 minutes on Saturday.

"Having considered all of the relevant matters, it was felt that that asking the two clubs to play the match again would serve no justifiable purpose given the nature of Saturday's events and seeing as its result has no bearing on promotion or relegation issues.

"The board of the Football League will consider the result of the match, and any other matters relating to it that are within its remit, at its next meeting on May 14. In doing so, it will take into the account the observations of both clubs.

"Any matters relating to crowd behaviour will be considered by the Football Association."

At the time of the stoppage, the score was 0-0 and if the Football League elect to declare that as the final result, the already-relegated Seasiders would at least equal the lowest-ever points tally posted by a second-tier side since the 1988 expansion to 24 teams.

Should Huddersfield be automatically awarded the victory, though, they would leapfrog Leeds into 15th place in the final standings.

In the aftermath of the contest, both Blackpool manager Lee Clark and his Huddersfield counterpart Chris Powell were unsure of whether they would be made to meet again.

However, Powell had revealed half of his team were due to go on holiday on Tuesday, making a possible replay difficult to schedule.

The pitch invasion by disgruntled Seasiders supporters was the culmination of growing anger at Oyston and his handling of the club en route to their dismal campaign.

Fans stopped a game against Burnley last term by lobbing tangerines and tennis balls on to the pitch and more demonstrations were held last month when their relegation into League One was confirmed, with eggs hurled at the back of directors' boxes and a firework and flare thrown in front of the main reception area of the West Stand.

The feeling of fury was enhanced further last week when a statue of 1953 FA Cup final hero Stan Mortensen was removed without explanation by the club in the build up to the Huddersfield game, which was preceded by a march against Oyston outside the ground.

It all resulted in the scenes inside Bloomfield Road as emotions finally boiled over to disrupt the Tangerines' on-field fortunes.

Blackpool Supporters Trust and fellow fans' group the Tangerine Knights had staged the march prior to kick-off and a statement from the former on Saturday night claimed Oyston's actions had motivated the pitch invasion.

They said: "Yes, there was a pitch invasion and yes, the afternoon's game did get abandoned, but the frustration of the majority inside Bloomfield Road at the way the club has been run of late was palpable and there was clear sympathy for this act of civil disobedience in which both the pitch invaders and the police acted with restraint and good humour."

Clark had refused to condemn those who came on to the pitch but the club issued a statement in which they vowed to "work with the relevant authorities to take appropriate action against all those responsible for disorder offences inside the stadium."