THE Football League are continuing to hold discussions with Charlton Athletic about the ongoing poor state of The Valley pitch which led to Saturday’s game with Barnsley being postponed.

Referee Iain Williamson called off the Championship encounter with the Tykes at lunchtime over concerns about player safety, prompting fury from both sets of supporters the match had been cancelled so close to kick off.

Earlier this season the Addicks were forced to abandon their home meeting with Doncaster in the first half with the visitors leading 3-1 after a heavy downpour made the surface unplayable.

And the club had already been forced to cancel tonight’s rescheduled FA Cup third round date with Oxford United twice before a similar fate befell the Barnsley clash at the weekend.

Charlton have promised extensive work will be carried out this summer to resolve the long-standing drainage problems once and for all.

But with plenty of football to be played between now and then, some Addicks supporters have become increasingly anxious their side could be hit with some form of punishment by the Football League if fixtures continue to be cancelled.

A spokesman for the League refused to speculate what possible consequences, if any, there might be for the SE7 side if more games are called off but did confirm they are in ongoing talks with the club about the issue.

“We are in a constructive dialogue with the club regarding the pitch at the Valley,” the spokesman said.

Meanwhile, the Football League say they will not be commenting on former chairman Michael Slater’s claims they blocked an earlier takeover at Charlton because the potential new owners refused to reveal their identities before the deal was completed.

“I’m afraid we can’t comment with regards to matters on club takeovers as these are private and confidential,” the League’s spokesman added.

“However, in any takeover we do expect to be told the identities of the beneficial owners of the club going forward.”

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