Scunthorpe United v Buxton abandoned in injury time because of heavy rain

Scunthorpe United’s home game with Buxton in National League North was abandoned in the final minutes of stoppage time because of a waterlogged pitch, after torrential rain.

Both teams posted on social media that the game was over, before clarifying the referee had abandoned it.

Scunthorpe boss Jimmy Dean said it was “not clear at all” what had happened.

The abandonment came on what is provisionally the hottest day of the year in the UK, with temperatures expected to have reached almost 33C on Saturday as part of the September heatwave.

“I went on to the pitch to ask him [the referee] what was going on after he blew the whistle and I don’t think he knew himself. It was when we got inside that he said it was abandoned,” Dean told BBC Radio Humberside.

“There was no dialogue, or coming over to talk to us, and he only confirmed it was abandoned when all hell broke loose in the tunnel.

“He said the game was over when I went on the pitch and I asked what that meant because there was at least five minutes of injury time left.

“The game should have been abandoned earlier than it was because we missed a penalty, but the player couldn’t see the ball.

“If I were Buxton I would want the game finished today. I’d want to go in, wait for 20 minutes and see if it dried out. The way the referee blew his whistle… it just wasn’t clear at all.”

The National League said no determination will be made on the outcome of the game until it receives the referee’s report.