EFL to review Rotherham v Cardiff abandonment following heavy rain

Referee Oliver Longford took the players off the field three minutes after half-time

Rotherham's match with Cardiff City was abandoned in the 47th minute because of an unplayable pitch following heavy rain at New York Stadium.

Cardiff had been leading 1-0 when referee Oliver Longford opted to take the players off the field and the English Football League (EFL) said it will review the decision.

Rain saw the match postponed after an inspection and a 45-minute delay.

Jaden Philogene had given Cardiff the lead after just five minutes.

Rotherham released a statement shortly after the postponement, saying the decision to call the game off will be reviewed by the EFL.

"Match referee Oliver Langford initially suspended play to allow the surface the opportunity to drain, but following a period in the dressing rooms, the pitch had not cleared and upon a further inspection, the game was called off," Rotherham said.

"The circumstances surrounding the abandonment will now be considered in-line with EFL regulations."

"Following the abandonment of this afternoon's Championship fixture between Rotherham United and Cardiff City, the circumstances surrounding this will now be considered in-line with EFL regulations," the EFL added.

It is understood Cardiff were unhappy with the decision to abandon the match.

A statement on Cardiff's website confirmed the postponement and said: "Further details will follow in due course."

Rotherham boss Matt Taylor said he felt the right decision had been made but admitted felt sympathy for travelling supporters.

"I didn't realise it had rained that hard. It was incredible and it wasn't forecasted," he said.

"We were not prepared for it. It hit the ground and within minutes of the second half being under way the referee made the right decision to take the players off the pitch.

"It was farcical. The ball was getting stuck and it was only a matter of time before a decision was made. The water was clearly not draining through. That is something that cannot be helped.

"It was a race against time to see if the pitch would improve at any stage. I told the players to stay ready because we had no timeframe."

Taylor felt continuing the game would have presented a safety risk.

"If we had gone back out there two hours later, the players are in a huge position of risk, not from the pitch itself but from cooling down and warming up again," he added.

"There is a bigger picture which has to be looked at.

"Sometimes there is nothing you can do about the weather. It was a downpour like we have never seen.

"I sympathise with their journey and their fans. We will replay the fixture."