HEREFORD manager Russell Slade said that the pitch at Kettering Town was ‘dangerous’ resulting in the match being called off.

A pitch inspection was carried out at 1.30pm when the ball failed to bounce in an area of the pitch.

“The pitch is 100 per cent not playable,” said Slade.

“I went to see the pitch immediately and the area just as you walk onto the pitch is exceptionally heavy and loaded with sand which masks over how poor the pitch is in that particular area.

“The you go and investigate all over the pitch and you see lots of these areas where the ball will not bounce.

“More importantly there is a danger to individual players and that’s the thing today. From a referee’s point of view as well it would be on his shoulders in many ways if the game was to go ahead and somebody picked up an injury in one of those areas because it is dangerous.

“It is deep (mud), I lost my training shoes over there it was like four or five inches, it’s like quicksand out there in some of those areas.

“The pitch obviously needs a lot more drying out time before it was going to be playable.”

Kettering stated that a pitch inspection wasn’t required last night and then cancelled a pitch inspection by a local referee this morning.

Slade added: “I think the frustration from our point of view, for our fans, our team and everybody else is that we travelled all the way here, there was an inspection in place and then that has been taken away.

“I think it was felt by Kettering, in their wisdom, that the game was going to be playable. Even though it is a nice day now that just masks over the fact that the pitch is just not suitable.

“For this level of football now you can’t play on these pitches, it has to be at least on a sound surface and not a danger to players out there, a career ending injury could occur in such conditions.

“We need to make certain that the pitch, when we do travel to Kettering to get the match played, that it’s in a lot better condition that it is now.”

Hereford now have a crucial match against bottom-half rivals Curzon Ashton at Edgar Street next weekend.

Slade added: “We will just increase the intensity and amount of time that we work on Tuesday and Thursday ready for Saturday.

“It’s a massive game, but at least we have a free week at it and hopefully injury free and on top of that one or two players getting closer to fitness.”