Lillywhites face match probe
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St Austell could be set for a hefty fine and possible point deduction after their game away at Callington was abandoned.
63 minutes of the game had been played when referee Dave Green called the game to a halt having sent both St Austell skipper Lee Whetter and assistant manager Steve Burt off with the Lillywhites 1-0 down and facing a penalty.
Green had also booked five St Austell players in the boggy conditions and the club will now have to wait until the league have received the official's match report before they can decide what action can be taken or re-arrangement made.
The club have been charged under rule 8.3 of the league rules which outlines the duration of matches and the consequences of abandonment for various reasons and they have until May 14 to either accept the charge, accept the charge with a written plea of mitigation or deny the charge and enter a written statement of evidence.
St Austell had fallen behind to an Anthony Mason goal after 52 minutes but they had also managed to escape an in-direct free-kick inside the box in the first half when Lee Whetter's tackle had been deemed to be a back pass.
This decision angered the St Austell team and through the 63 minutes that were played they saw Gary Wheildon, Jay Isbell, Will Tinsley, Chris Phillips and Dan Lean all booked with St Austell skipper Whetter sent off for a foul on Dennis Mason.
After a period of discussion Whetter eventually left the field only to sit in the visiting dug-out and after Green had told Whetter that he had to leave the arena he received an angry backlash from the St Austell bench which lead to Steve Burt also being sent off and the ref abandoning the game.
St Austell manager Glyn Rowett said: “I am personally not happy in the manner that this game was called off.
“The events that lead to the final outcome could have been better managed by the referee in this possible title deciding match.
“But the final discussion to end this game was when the referee asked our assistant manager whom he thought was me “do you want me to abandon the game” and he said “yes go on then” in jest.
“He then blew his whistle and marched off to his dressing room. We did try and to get the game restarted by asking our assistant to talk to the referee but he was not interested.
“We will be sending a full report to the league and county in our defence.”
If the game at Callington is replayed and the club managed to defeat both Callington and Vospers in their remaining games they would still have a mathematical chance of winning the league, but it would depend on Penzance and Newquay's final results.
