Blow for fans in winds of 80mph
A football match was abandoned amid farcical conditions yesterday – leaving fans with a 360- mile round trip for 12 minutes of action.
As Storm Erik hit, the Arbroath v Stranraer game was scrapped after home goalkeeper Darren Jamieson sent a goal kick up the park, only to see the ball blow backwards and out for a corner to the visitors.
Arbroath’s Gay f ield ground is notorious for its exposed location right next to the North Sea.
The Scottish League One match will now be played on Tuesday.
Arbroath said: “We apologise to both sets of supporters who travelled to the game.
“The game was deemed playable at 1pm and 2pm but succumbed to the wind.”
St orm Er i k , which brought gusts of up to 80mph , a l so caused transport problems.
The Forth road bridge was shut and ferry services faced cancellations or delays.
Restrictions were in place at the Dornoch, Friarton and Skye bridges.
ScotRail posted a clip of waves pounding the rail line at Ardrossan Harbour, although they said there was no weather- related disruption to the network.
Scotland faces plunging temperatures today as Storm Erik is replaced by an Arctic blast.
Atlant ic weather is tomorrow expected to bring rain to the west and north, with snow predicted at the end of the month.