Sunderland’s FA Women’s Championship fixture against Crystal Palace has been postponed less than an hour before the scheduled kick-off due to a frozen pitch in Hetton-le-Hole.
The recent cold weather left the playing surface frozen this morning. The match referee is understood to have conducted a pitch inspection at 12.15pm before following up with a further check at 1pm. The conditions had not improved enough for the game to go ahead and Crystal Palace must now make the long trip back to South London knowing that they must return to the North East for the rearranged game later in the season.
The postponement throws up a debate on the scheduling of winter fixtures by The Football Association. No less than 293 miles separate Crystal Palace’s home ground of Hayes Lane and Sunderland’s Eppleton Colliery base and it always seemed risky handing a team such a long distance fixture in the first week of January. Another opening 2022 fixture handed Durham the 332-mile trip to Lewes, however, that game was postponed due to COVID-19. The Wildcats travelled to Lewes at a similar point in the year last season and the game only marginally beat the icy conditions.
In the Barclays FA Women’s Super League, Manchester City were handed the longest trip of the weekend, a 207-mile trek to The People’s Pension Stadium in Crawley to face Brighton & Hove Albion. That game has survived the recent bad weather.
A new date for the FA Women’s Championship fixture between Sunderland and Crystal Palace will be agreed between the two clubs in due course.
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