OFFICIALS at Penryn Athletic have called for more common sense to be shown in pitch inspections by referees in Cornwall.

The call comes after the turf at their Kernick Road ground was churned up badly on Boxing Day when it was used for the reserve team’s clash against Falmouth Town.

Hours before the derby kicked off, Athletic had asked the referee to call off the match over worries the near-waterlogged pitch would get damaged.

However, the pitch, which in 2008 won the SWPL West Ground of the Year Award, was deemed good enough after an inspection.

Since then the ground has not been used for any matches due to the damage caused.

Now club officials have spoken out about the situation, saying they feel guidelines given by the Football Association were not followed.

Advice for referees includes consulting groundsmen at the home club for information and taking weather conditions likely during the game into consideration.

Speaking to the Packet, Athletic’s secretary Mike Young said the club feel they have been “let down”.

“There has to be a more common sense approach for pitch inspections,” he said.

“Our hope is that we will be able to play again on the pitch within a couple of weeks, but with the weather as it is, getting repairs done has not been as easy as hoped as the middle of the ground is still very soft under foot.

“We have three sides here who all want to play football, but they cannot and we’ll have a backlog of games towards the end of the season.

“All of this us because of what happened on Boxing Day.”

Cornwall FA officials said they have had no formal complaint made to them by Athletic.

They also stated although guidance is provided to all match officials in regards to pitch inspections, it is entirely down to the discretion of the referee whether a game is called off or not.

Referee development officer Ray Brown said: “The match referee or a nominated colleague, who must be of the appropriate referring standard or greater, shall inspect the field of play should there be a doubt in whether the game can take place.

“The referee’s responsibility is to decide whether or not the fixture in question can be played on that day and other fixtures do not have a bearing on this decision.

“The referee making the inspection will consult with the match referee, if he has been nominated to do the inspection, and also consult with ground staff in terms of local knowledge and draining capabilities in event of standing water.

“But, the decision as to whether the match is played is solely that of the inspecting referee.”