CFL sponsored Andover's growing fixtures back log could become the one major obstacle to Ken Cunningham Brown's town side lifting the JWL crown against this season and the mood in the Lions camp after last Saturday's game at Swanage Town was called off was almost like a smoking volcano.

"It was a ridiciulous decision," erupted an angry KCB after Gosport referee Chris Williams decided that the pitch at Grounds Day Park was unfit for play due to a waterlogged pitch. "He just didn't want to know. Maybe he had a wedding to go to or something."

KCB added that if referees were going to call off games with decisions like that then the JWL would have trouble getting half their league games played this season.

"It was only a game between Swanage and Andover, we were not trying to put on a game between England and Germany," he said. "Both the referees' assistants thought the game should be played."

But some referees are reluctant to play the games because they are frightened that if a player suffers a serious injury then the player can sue the match official but KCB said that the Swanage pitch was not dangerous. "Mike Burford (his assistant) and I would never let them play if we thought there was the slightest it danger to the players. It was just an unbelievable decision," summed up the Andover boss.

He added that there was some water on one side of the pitch but both teams wanted to play. The Swanage club's grounds man thought it was the best the pitch had been all year and even an appeal to the referee from JWL vice-chairman Ray Barnes failed to get the match official to change his mind.

Referees usually call in both managers to ask their opinion if there is a doubt that the game should go ahead but Mr Williams did not even have the courtesy to do that.

The referees' fees were controversially increased at a JWL meeting on Sunday at Christchurch and KCB suggested that they should in future have their fee cut if they turn up and the match is not played. "We don't get anything if the game is called off and neither do the fans. We're one of the best aupported teams in the league and they all had a wasted journey. I was really annoyed."

The one consolation for the Lions was that league leaders Fleet Town's game at Fareham was also postponed - one of three first division matches to be called off. Andover, who have played only 19 of this season's 44 league games so far this season, are still 10 points behind the leaders but have played eight games less.

There was further good news for the town club with winger Shaun Dyke having his sending off against Lymington & NM thrown out by a Hants FA disciplinary committee at a personal hearing in Southampton last week.

Club secretary Chris Jeremy and physio Chris Burford attended the hearing with Dyke at the Hants FA offices in Southampton and on the evidence put before the commission the case was not proved and all fees will now be returned to the player.

Dyke however was due up before the commission again last night (Thursday) with him asking for another personal hearing for his other sending off this season in the home league game against Eastleigh

Former Lion Lloyd Webber is the latest ex-Andover player to join big-spending Hants Premier outfit Winchester City, with him teaming up with ex-Saint Mark Blake at City after being released by Conference side Woking. Webber was in the Winchester side last Saturday that trounced bottom-of-the-table AFC Aldermaston 5-1, with ex-King's Somborne hitman Michael Jackson notching a hat-trick.

The Lions are back in JWL action against Christchurch at The Portway this Saturday (3pm) and next Tuesday play host to DML giants Newport (IoW) in the quarter-finals of the Hants Senior Cup (7.45pm).