Sale v Wasps: Postponed
London Wasps have come under heavy criticism after opting out of Friday night’s Guinness Premiership match with Sale just minutes before it was due to kick-off.
Deeming the surface ‘dangerous’, particularly down one channel of the pitch at Edgeley Park, the visitors boarded their team bus just 10 minutes before the match itself was scheduled to begin.
Sale, and especially Director of Rugby Kingsley Jones, were left very unimpressed by the Londoners’ move.
“I’m not happy about it and I’m really disappointed for the players because they are devastated,” said Jones to the PA.
“I’m sure the Wasps players aren’t as disappointed as they got on their bus.
“All our preparation has been wasted. The referee basically said that Wasps weren’t happy to play the ground on safety grounds.
“He was happy to take the field of play but he cannot force either team to take the field of play.
“I’ve played in much worse conditions than this. But Wasps were on their bus back home at 7.25pm and they made the decision that they weren’t going to play the game.”
Match official David Rose has also confirmed that he was prepared to allow the match to start but insists that he could not force Wasps to take the field.
“The situation is that Wasps didn’t want to play the game because they felt the pitch was unsafe.
“At that point my opinion doesn’t count for anything – I cannot make any team take the field to play.
“Once the game starts the safety of the game becomes my concern but before the game, I have no influence on either side.”
Wasps Director of Rugby Tony Hanks meanwhile said: “We didn’t think the pitch was fit to play and we don’t believe, especially when it comes to scrummaging, that the surface was safe.
“We had a meeting with the referee and Kingsley Jones and at about 7.09pm we made the decision not to play the game.
“Nobody informed us that the pitch was in such a bad state. I’m gutted for the fans and we’re all disappointed – but I’m still not going to risk the safety of the players.
“We got advice from the referee and as far as we are concerned we have gone down the right channels.”
