Rangers: Dermot Gallagher has say on Dundee postponement after watching Dens Park footage
Dermot Gallagher has had his say on the somewhat controversial decision to call off the Dundee versus Rangers match at late notice.
Sunday’s (17 March) contest, scheduled to kick off at midday, was postponed around an hour and a half beforehand due to a waterlogged pitch.
Match referee Don Robertson explained that decision was down to the pitch being unplayable in certain areas.
That is a decision that did not go down well with Gers boss Philippe Clement, or indeed the travelling fans who made the trip to Dens Park.
Explaining the process to call off the match on Sky Sports News [18 March, 11:52am], ex-FIFA official Gallagher said: “The referee is checking if the pitch is playable. Does the ball bounce and is it dangerous for the players?
“The referee did not feel it was up to scratch. The process for the club is that if they felt it was in doubt, get the referee in early and get him to look at it.
“The match referee went at 10:30 in the morning and called it off. The referee has the final say, or Dundee if they felt it was unplayable the night before could get an SPFL referee in.”
Rangers annoyed at Dundee game postponement
Games being postponed at late notice due to mother nature is one of those things, as annoying as it can sometimes be.
Yet Dundee have now had four games called off at Dens Park this season, which is not a coincidence.
What annoyed Clement the most is that Rangers were not informed the game was even in doubt until the morning of the game.
The Belgian felt that they were surely aware of the issue the night before, but there was no correspondence until the following morning.
Dundee responded to that by saying the amount of rain that fell overnight was double that that had been forecast.
Either way, it is a messy situation and now the Gers have this game in hand hanging over their heads for at least a few weeks.
And even if we are now about to enter spring, do not be surprised if another Dundee home match gets culled between now and the end of the season.
In other Rangers news, Gary Keown insists a Gers regular should not be in Clement’s plans for the upcoming Old Firm clash.
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