Norwich City's Championship trip to Barnsley on Saturday is off.
Norwich City's Championship trip to Barnsley on Saturday is off.
A pitch inspection at Oakwell early Friday afternoon confirmed that a week of snow and freezing conditions in South Yorkshire had taken too great a toll for the game to go ahead.
In a statement on their official website, City said: 'Norwich City's Sky Bet Championship game at Barnsley scheduled for Saturday, March 3 has been postponed. This is as a consequence of severe bad weather across the country in recent days which has significantly impacted upon travel conditions as well as the areas surrounding Barnsley's stadium.
It was decided by all parties this decision was best made as far in advance as possible, in order to minimise the impact on supporters.
'We apologise for the inconvenience caused and thank supporters in their understanding of the situation. Information relating to a rearranged date for the fixture will be announced in due course, as will information relating to tickets purchased for the postponed fixture.'
The Tykes said the inspection would be held to 'see if the grass is in playable condition for this weekend', but there were also thought to be issues with access around the ground.
Barnsley's statement added: 'The pitch is one of the factors that will determine whether the game can go ahead or not.
'The club will…ensure everyone can plan their weekend travel at the earliest opportunity.'
December 2014 was the last time an Oakwell game was postponed, when Oldham were due to visit in League One – not caused by the initial snow but the subsequent sub-zero temperatures that turned it into ice and rendering the undersoil heating useless.
Temperatures in Barnsley are not set to poke their heads back above zero until Saturday afternoon – slightly earlier than had been suggested during the week.
MORE: Read Michael Bailey's six things as Norwich City are held by Bolton
Norwich had planned to leave for Yorkshire late Friday evening, having had a free week since their goalless draw at home to Bolton last weekend.
Barnsley picked up a 1-1 draw at Hull on Tuesday night, three days after an excellent 2-0 win at fellow strugglers Birmingham.
Closer to home, City's Under-23s Premier League 2 match with Fulham at Colney Training Centre on Friday has been postponed. A new date for the match will be announced in due course.
The Under-18s and Under-16s fixtures with Reading, due to take place at the Reading Training Ground on Saturday, have also been postponed
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