AFC Wimbledon’s sinkhole chaos continues as League Two game called off

Accrington Stanley match follows Newcastle cup tie in being postponed with sandy bunkers emerging to destroy Plough Lane pitch

AFC Wimbledon’s sinkhole chaos has now forced their League Two match against Accrington Stanley to be postponed, with the club unable to find an alternative venue in time.
Wimbledon’s Plough Lane pitch has been destroyed by heavy flooding and earlier this week they were forced to postpone their midweek League Cup match against Newcastle United. That tie will now be held at St James’ Park on Tuesday, October 1 at 7.45pm.
Such was the destruction of the playing surface, certain areas of the pitch were made to look more like a golf course with sandy bunkers than a football ground.
More than 100,000 litres of water were pumped out of Plough Lane this week after buildings and concourses were left under water following heavy rainfall at the weekend.
Wimbledon hoped to find another venue in London for their match against Accrington but the club have now announced that they have been unable to do so.
“Despite significant efforts at AFC Wimbledon in the last 48 hours, it has not been possible to secure a viable alternative ground for Saturday,” Wimbledon said in a statement.
“With huge regret, the EFL has therefore postponed the match versus Accrington Stanley. Tickets will remain valid for the rearranged date, with more details to follow in due course.”
James Woodroof, the club’s managing director, told the BBC earlier this week: “I woke up to images from my stadium team. I thought it was AI [artificial intelligence].
“The entire stadium, the concourse and ground floor, was under water. It was horrendous. The pitch has significant damage. We filled four tankers, which house 27,000 litres each – over 100,000 litres.”
Here’s a before and after of today’s progress with the pitch. 🎥 #AFCW 🟡🔵 pic.twitter.com/uI6loNBSIN
The flooding comes after the nearby River Wandle broke its banks following more than a month’s worth of rain on Sunday and Monday morning.
Wimbledon’s next scheduled home match is against Carlisle on October 12.