List Bizarre/unusual reasons for cancelled/suspended/abandoned games

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Match between Caramut and Lismore/Derrinallum was abandoned after a Caramut player in the reserves suffered a head injury and a medical helicopter was used to get him to hospital. The copter landed on the ground during the first quarter of the seniors with Lismore leading 14 to 6.

www.standard.net.au

Caramut footballer on the mend after head clash

Senior game called off as clubmate treated.
www.standard.net.au www.standard.net.au
 

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Rubber Arm said:
Your kidding haha. Surely both teams would have had at least 10 practice balls each. Or they could have used the ressies game ball or something

On SM-G991B using BigFooty.com mobile app
Click to expand...

Footballs were not as plentiful in the pre-WWII era and they were used until they could be used no more. Here is an article from a book I wrote:


A RIGHT BALLS-UP …

The Moora Football Association match between Coomberdale and Rovers on July 11, 1920 at the Koondoroo ground was quite rightly described as ‘a fiasco’ in The Moora Herald and Midland District Advocate‘s match report.

Rovers was the designated home team for the match despite playing at Coomberdale’s secondary venue but nobody from Rovers brought a football with them and the Coomberdale team didn’t bring one either. A Mr Ashby volunteered to ‘run the gauntlet along the awful road to Coomberdale’ to obtain the school’s football.

He returned with a ball but it had a leak in it, which was rectified by the application of chewing gum to the leak. This worked wonders until about five minutes before the final bell when ‘Walker, in booting the ball struck Ferguson in the face’. The ball exploded as
a result and the match couldn’t be finished.

Rovers led 1.10 to 0.3 at the time but Coomberdale’s delegates argued at the next MFA meeting that their team may have still won the match. The clubs eventually agreed and the match was declared a draw.
 
35Daicos said:
View attachment 562516
FOOTBALL. - A SPOILED ROUND. - The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957) - 2 Jun 1913 (2 June 1913)
Click to expand...

In my research of a book on football in WA between 1885-1945, I found a number of instances in the pre-WWI era where matches were conceded by a team at halftime or during the match due to bad weather.

A club even won a premiership that way. In the Pingelly Football Association, the 1923 Final on September 16 saw Popanyinning concede to Pingelly during the final quarter on account of rain. Pingelly led 4.15.39 to 0.0.0 at the time.
 
Todman said:
4/10/1968 Beverley Times
Final abandoned after hailstorm

A prolonged and extremely heavy hailstorm forced the Central Great Southern League football grand final to be abandoned at half time at Katanning on 22nd. September, and injured some of the players.

Kojonup's captain/coach, Graham Zilko, was taken to Hospital suffering from exposure and exhaustion and two other players collapsed in the dressing rooms afterwards. All three suffered hail bruises. Zilko was treated at the Hospital and allowed to leave.

Wanderers capt./coach, Con Regan said: "It was the most remarkable thing I have ever seen. The whole oval was a sheet of ice and hail. In some places we were 3 inches deep in ice. I didn't mind abandoning the game as I think if we hadn't Kojonup would have had to forfeit - they had three out at half time and they were collapsing."

Said Kojonup committeeman Alex Brown "They should have been skiing instead of playing football. Occasions when football has been abandoned because of inclement weather are very rare and this is indicative of the severity of conditions.

During the hailstorm, which lasted throughout the two quarters of football, players sat and tried to protect their legs with their jumpers while protecting their head with their hands.

Afterwards schoolboys were making ice-balls and throwing them at one another.
Click to expand...

The score at the time of the abandonment was Kojonup 1.0.6 to Wanderers 0.5.5.
 
In a game between Burnie and Penguin in 1936, the game, at Burnie, was played in atrocious conditions, with a steady downpour turning into a hurricane with only a few minutes remaining. Blinding rain and howling wind made the players barely able to remain on their feet, some even lying flat in the mud. The crowd panicked as the hurricane threatened to demolish the grandstand. Penguin, at that stage 41 points down, was gradually depleted as players left the ground until only six were left. Burnie, with just 11 men left on the field, finished with an 8.10 (58) to 2.5 (17) victory.
 
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aflcentralvic.com.au

Castlemaine marks hat-trick of grand finals - AFL Central Victoria

BY NATHAN DOLE Castlemaine marks hat-trick of grand finals CASTLEMAINE will mark a hat-trick of grand final appearances in the Champions IGA-backed CVFL senior women’s… Read More »
aflcentralvic.com.au aflcentralvic.com.au

CASTLEMAINE will mark a hat-trick of grand final appearances in the Champions IGA-backed CVFL senior women’s clash on September 6.

The Jordan Cochrane-coached Magpies advanced to what will be “one night in September” after Sunday’s second semi-final against Golden Square was abandoned.

A severe storm marked by hail and heavy rain drenched Bendigo’s Queen Elizabeth Oval and led to the match being called off.

Unbeaten across the 18-round home-and-away series, Castlemaine progresses to the season decider.

For the Nathan Manuel-coached Golden Square the focus will now be on next Friday night’s preliminary final against Woorinen at the QEO.



I'd think I'd rather stay home in front of a fire.
 
Todman said:
aflcentralvic.com.au

Castlemaine marks hat-trick of grand finals - AFL Central Victoria

BY NATHAN DOLE Castlemaine marks hat-trick of grand finals CASTLEMAINE will mark a hat-trick of grand final appearances in the Champions IGA-backed CVFL senior women’s… Read More »
aflcentralvic.com.au aflcentralvic.com.au

CASTLEMAINE will mark a hat-trick of grand final appearances in the Champions IGA-backed CVFL senior women’s clash on September 6.

The Jordan Cochrane-coached Magpies advanced to what will be “one night in September” after Sunday’s second semi-final against Golden Square was abandoned.

A severe storm marked by hail and heavy rain drenched Bendigo’s Queen Elizabeth Oval and led to the match being called off.

Unbeaten across the 18-round home-and-away series, Castlemaine progresses to the season decider.

For the Nathan Manuel-coached Golden Square the focus will now be on next Friday night’s preliminary final against Woorinen at the QEO.



I'd think I'd rather stay home in front of a fire.
Click to expand...

Been a lot of hail about. The Southern Football League grand final at North Hobart between Cygnet and Lindisfarne had a rippa hail storm just before half time and even bigger one after final siren when Cygnet were being presented with the Cup!
 
In 1957, a game between two NSW teams, Ariah Park-Mirrool (APM) and Narrandera at Ariah Park started an hour late due to the Narrandera bus breaking down. When the game had 10 minutes left to play, the light was fading quite badly. Bill Pleming from APM and Johnny Deaton from Narrandera then became involved in an altercation near the dressing shed boundary. An all-in brawl then developed, and when the dust settled the Narrandera coach took his players into the dressing shed. The APM players remained on the oval whilst the umpire convinced the Narrandera players to return.
When play resumed it was only when the ball was reached the skyline that the players could tell which way it was going. APM ended up winning the game.
 

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In the Old Scholars Football Association in Hobart this year, two clubs, DOSA and Hutchins had TWO matches cancelled in the same season!

In the opening round DOSA hosted Hutchins under lights at the TCA Ground before a pretty decent crowd and were well on top and running away with the game, five-plus goals up five minutes before half time when a floodlight tower right near the main grandstand had an electrical short and went out.
After players and umpires left the field early due the lighting failure, the halftime break was extended to give it a chance to get the lights back up and working.
After it was discovered the problem was serious and would need the Council to send in the electricians during the week the match was abandoned.
As the match didn't make it to half time (approximately 23 minutes into the second quarter) it didn't constitute a match and both sides got two points each.

Later in the season the two sides met at Queenborough Oval in Sandy Bay.
In the early part of the third quarter of the reserve grade game, a Hutchins player recieved a very badly broken leg and they were advised not to move him.
An ambulance was summoned, the rest of the game was called off with the score being that at five minutes into the third quarter.
As players and officials waited, and waited, and waited, the umpires advised that as Queenborough was not equipped with lights for night football, then they would discuss the option of playing four fifteen minute quarters in order to get the match underway and completed.
An ambulance finally arrived two and half hours after it was called and by this time, it was decided to call the match off without it having started. Match cancelled, both clubs again awarded two points each.
 
worbod said:
In a game between Burnie and Penguin in 1936, the game, at Burnie, was played in atrocious conditions, with a steady downpour turning into a hurricane with only a few minutes remaining. Blinding rain and howling wind made the players barely able to remain on their feet, some even lying flat in the mud. The crowd panicked as the hurricane threatened to demolish the grandstand. Penguin, at that stage 41 points down, was gradually depleted as players left the ground until only six were left. Burnie, with just 11 men left on the field, finished with an 8.10 (58) to 2.5 (17) victory.
Click to expand...
West Park was still like that in the 90s!!!! 🤣
 

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List Bizarre/unusual reasons for cancelled/suspended/abandoned games

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