England Fans To Get Refund After Poland Farce

The Polish FA says it will refund England fans who were unable to attend the rescheduled World Cup qualifier in Warsaw.

The game was called off after about eight hours of torrential rain left the pitch waterlogged. Officials had decided not to close the £400m Warsaw national stadium's sliding roof.

Around 2,500 England fans travelled to Poland for Tuesday's match - but many were unable to stay on for the rescheduled 4pm kick-off on Wednesday because they could not change their travel arrangements.

They will be able to claim back the cost of any unused tickets through the FA - but it is unclear if they will get any help with money spent on transport and accommodation.

One returning fan told Sky News: "The whole thing is just horrendous. This is an international fixture, a World Cup qualifier, and it's been rained off in a ground that has got a roof. I can't get my head round that."

The FA's Adrian Bevington said compensation for fans who had spent money on the trip was something that was being "looked into".

England's players are to part-fund a £50,000 scheme with the FA to refund the price of tickets to those fans who did stay on for the delayed game.

Captain Steven Gerrard said: "We know that fans have spent money and taken time off work to travel to Poland and we don't take it for granted."

Former England manager Graham Taylor, who was in Poland for the match, said the treatment of supporters had been "disgraceful".

He said: "I thought this was a prime example of how supporters are treated with such disrespect.

England fans take down flags after the match is called off

"What I mean by that is that it was pretty obvious from the moment the ref came on the pitch for the very first time that this pitch was not playable.

"You could see that, yet it was two-and-a-quarter hours later before supporters were actually told it wasn't on.

"Now they have reasons for not having the stadium roof shut, but don't you get weather forecasts in this country?

"Then when all the supporters had left their seats, when they decided the game was eventually off, an announcement came asking all England fans to remain in their seats for the next 15 minutes.

"Hold on a minute, there was no-one else in the stadium. It was very poor how this game was eventually postponed."

Kick-off had been delayed by 45 minutes to allow for two pitch inspections, but referee Gianluca Rocchi finally decided to postpone the match as the playing surface remained badly waterlogged.

Mark Perryman, from the England Supporters' Club, said: "There was one announcement. The lack of information for the fans was absolutely appalling."

Officials said the retractable roof on the National Stadium - a key venue for Euro 2012 - could not be closed because the wind and rain was too intense.

It was the first time an England match has been called off due to the weather since 1979 and the decision was greeted with jeers by fans.

It is believed the England players had changed out of their kit and were ready to leave as long as 30 minutes before the official decision was announced.

Knowing rain was forecast, the FA asked on arrival on Monday whether it was going to be closed but were told it was going to remain open.

By the time it became obvious the heavy rain that began falling at lunchtime was not going to stop, it was too late.

"The FIFA delegate made the decision tonight to close the roof as quickly as possible but we could not do it because the rain already on it was too heavy," Polish FA spokesperson Agnieszka Olejkowska said.

With a number of their squad due to play league matches on Friday, the Polish Federation were reluctant to agree to today's game and suggested a November encounter instead.

However, with Fifa regulations stipulating the game should be rearranged for Wednesday and England already having a lucrative friendly in Gothenburg next month as part of the centenary celebrations of the Swedish Football Association, the FA stood firm.

England boss Roy Hodgson said: "It's a disaster for the Polish Federation - I had no idea quite how bad the conditions were going to be."

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