Sport has ground to a halt at Glasgow University this week, thanks to the mountain of snow that has landed at Garscube and other venues across the City.
With Garscube Sports Complex lying under inches of snow, outdoor matches have been rendered unplayable, whilst indoor fixtures have been scuppered due to safety concerns as Glasgow University Sports Association (GUSA) prefering to play it safe and strike matches from team diaries rather than expect teams to travel from Aberdeen, Stirling or Dundee through the arctic conditions.
The decision has affected all Glasgow University teams scheduled to play British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) matches.
GUSA President, Leo Howes, commented: “The decision to cancel all of Glasgow’s BUCS fixtures this week was taken by myself and Elaine Anderson, the SRS fixture administrator, as the safety of our students is paramount and with weather and road conditions as they are it is not worth taking any risks
“I think sport is always at the mercy of weather conditions but we have done our best to be as prepared as possible and we have responded quickly to the coming of the ice and snow”.
Anyone who has tried to traverse around the West End this past week or commute to University will understand just how difficult travel has proved to be. Radio reports informed that the M8 was closed in both directions and should be avoided if possible. Meanwhile numerous trains from Queen Street Station were cancelled, causing difficulties for teams attempting to transaport players and equipment to events.
One article detailed how the Rangers Football Team bus got stuck on the A9 travelling back from Dundee, after their league game against Dundee Utd was called off. It seems they had to get off and push the bus after it got stuck in heavy snow and then proceeded to help similarly stuck motoristis.
Leo Howes continued: “We are pleased with the number of fixtures we have managed to get played this year though and I think this is largely down to the hard work of SRS staff. The Garscube grounds staff in particular deserve a lot of credit for the excellent standard of our outdoor facilities this year.”
The only activities that seems to be taking place this week are winter sports, with clubs such as the Ski and Snow Boarding Club in their element. Winter sports enthusiasts won’t far to travel to don their salopetes and skis, with many being spotted heading in the direction of the snow covered hills around the Kelvingrove Park.
If you are not a fan of winter sports, take the time off from sport to get some extra study in for those impending exams or head down to the Stevie, make your way to the sauna, warm those cold bones, close your eyes and dream you are somewhere altogether more tropical rather than Siberianesque Glasgow.
