Officials accused of ‘playing with lives’ after ‘rarely seen storm of such violence’ results in Top 14 match postponement

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A picture from @tom_fcx showing the amount of water that led to Sunday's Toulon versus La Rochelle postponement at Stade Mayol, inset

Toulon have issued a statement to fans angered by Sunday night’s 11th-hour postponement of their Top 14 match at home to La Rochelle.

Both teams were at Stade Mayol, but with stormy weather unleashing a deluge on the stadium, the 9:05pm local time kick-off was pushed back by 15 minutes. A second update was provided, calling off the match that was set to be played with a crowd of 10,000 in attendance.

A social media post from the Top 14 explained: “The RC Toulon-Rochelais match in the Third Round has been postponed due to the referee’s decision because of weather conditions. The decision on the postponement date will be made on Monday.”

The decision to belatedly postpone the match left supporters up in arms, as they accused officials of ignoring severe weather warnings in a region where it had been decided to postpone the high-profile football match between Marseille and PSG at the Velodrome.

“Supporters slipped, dozens of cars were stuck…”

Fans posted videos and pictures to social media showing floods in the stadium and also attacked officials for trying to get the match played rather than postponing it earlier on Sunday, before people would have travelled to the ground.

“I was at Mayol tonight,” tweeted one frustrated supporter. “The prefecture has blood on its hands… You played with our lives. How can a match be held in such conditions? At 4pm, we were still receiving a reassuring message from the club and the prefecture.

“Confident, we went for it. And yet… I have rarely seen a storm of such violence. Supporters slipped, dozens of cars were stuck under more than a metre of water, the roads plunged into darkness, the deafening thunder…

“I was afraid for my life. You preferred the spectacle over safety. It’s shameful. You make me sick.”

Another fan wrote: “How could you agree to play despite the apocalyptic weather and not oppose the foolish directives? Do you think about the supporters who must return home under torrents of water?”

“Scandalous to have endangered all those enthusiasts who took to the road on the advice of the @Prefet83 when the OM PSG match was postponed,” read another X post.

A fourth fan added: “Seriously, do you take people for fools!? Who insisted that this match be played!? The broadcaster? How could a prefectural authority with so many weather forecasting resources have authorised this?”

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Toulon have now issued a statement, stating: “Following the severe weather that hit the Stade Mayol and the entire department during the night from Sunday to Monday, we hope that you and your loved ones were able to return home safely.

“We would like to commend your cooperation and civic-mindedness last night. Your compliance with evacuation instructions helped ensure the safety of everyone in the best possible conditions.

“The Ligue Nationale de Rugby should officially announce the new date for the Toulon–La Rochelle match at the beginning of the week (probably in November). The ticketing arrangements for the postponed match will be detailed to you shortly.

“The entire Rugby Club Toulonnais team thanks all of its supporters for their commitment and solidarity. See you soon in Mayol.”

READ MORE: Top 14 match descends into chaos as fans accused of throwing beer at players

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