Sunderland disappointed as rain takes its toll

Two Bank of Scotland Premier League matches and Sunderland’s Division One clash with Preston were the highest profile victims of the weather today.

Torrential rain on Wearside left the pitch unplayable at the Stadium of Light - while waterlogged pitches saw the matches between Livingston and Hearts and Motherwell and Aberdeen postponed.

At Sunderland, referee Phil Prosser was on the field long before the scheduled kick-off and voiced concerns at the amount of standing water on the playing surface.

He asked for the pitch to be spiked before inspecting at 1.45pm, and the opening of the turnstiles was delayed by 15 minutes. But as the downpour continued, Prosser had little hesitation in postponing the game – much to the disappointment of both sides.

Seven Division Three matches were called off. Home games for Boston, Bristol Rovers, Bury, Cambridge, Mansfield, Torquay and York were postponed – while in Division Two the matches between Grimsby and Bristol City, Bournemouth and Wrexham and Hartlepool and Luton have also fallen foul of the weather.

North of the border the Bell’s First Division matches at Falkirk, Raith Rovers and Queen of the South have been called off.

The Division Two games at Berwick and Dumbarton have been postponed – while only the Montrose-Stranraer fixture remains standing in the third.

In Scottish rugby, the BT Premiership games at Glasgow Hutcheson’s, Aberdeen GSFP and Melrose have also been postponed.