On this Day - 30th July 2002

As we are in Pre-Season mode, let's look back eight years, and the Stags and Derby County were playing a pre-season friendly at Field Mill.....

With the scores set at 0-0 after 43 minutes, torential rain at the ground, led the match to be called off.

'It was a shame because it was a good run-out for us,' said Derby County captain in 2003 Warren Barton. 'Mansfield had played five games before meeting us and it showed, they looked very sharp.

'But it became impossible to play. There was a lot of surface water and the ball just wasn't rolling.

'The referee looked at both benches to check and took us off early and it was the right decision.

'I feel sorry for the fans who came along but nobody wants anyone to get injured and it was sensible to end it.

'I have never seen anything like it, even when I was at Newcastle United and playing in Thailand and Singapore in pre-season friendlies when they had monsoons.

'It just shows the extremes of the English weather - on Monday you are sunbathing and then on Tuesday the rain comes down like that.'

Referee Mr Baines from Chesterfield said it was an easy decision to make.

'After about 10 minutes I started to get worried,' said the 37-year-old. 'In the end there was just too much surface water and even 10 minutes after we came off it was not shifting.

'The safety of the players is paramount and it was only a pre-season friendly after all. The players just want a work-out, not to risk injury.'

Rams manager John Gregory was in no doubt that the game had to be ended early.

'The referee had no option,' said Gregory. 'The ball was holding up in the standing water and players could have been hurt.