It’s been a blank – and black – weekend for amateur rugby league in west Cumbria with not a game played.
Five matches should have taken place and not one has gone ahead because of clubs not being able to field teams.
To add to the disappointment of cancelled fixtures, Aspatria Hornets have said that they won’t be playing again this season although they expect to be up and running again next year.
Kenny Millican has been the acting secretary for the Holmen Iggesund Cumberland ARL since Lorraine Degraff broke her leg and he acts to have been bitterly disappointed by all the cancellations.
“It’s been a nightmare quite frankly. This season we have had 26 broken fixtures and as a consequence the games have been awarded 24-0 against the clubs who couldn’t raise teams.
“The worst thing is some of these clubs have loads of players signed on and you just wonder how they are unable to raise a side. Things have got to change.”
First to be called off was Wednesday’s Premier Division game between Ellenborough and their town neighbours Maryport when the visitors couldn’t put a team together.
Last night it was Hensingham A who had to cry-off their First Division game at Seaton A.
Then today all three scheduled Premier Division games were scrubbed and recorded as 24-0 victories for Lowca, Wath Brow A and Glasson as Aspatria, Maryport and Cockermouth could not raise sufficient players.