RED RUM DEAL FOR EXETER

My good friends are sharing a "virtual" Grand National on Saturday, by way of Zoom or similar.
I'm remembering in March the 30th 1974, when Red Rum, with Brian Fletcher on board, won the 128th Grand National for the second consecutive year. Please note Priness Camilla! and watch out for Charles Dickens....Spanish Steps...L'Escargot......
https://uk.video.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?fr=yhs-itm-001&hsimp=yhs-001&hspart=itm&p=Red+Rum+1974#id=1&vid=d74cff20bbed3b2cf0c959407369d761&action=click
With no football going on at the moment, here is the history of a couple of postponed matches from the 1973-4 Football League season, a season that was not affected by a nationwide epidemic, as now!

On the same Saturday in 1974, Halifax Town and Exeter City asked the Football League to postpone their respective league fixtures because their playing squads had been decimated by injury and illness.

Halifax were given permission to postpone their Division 3 match at Bournemouth.

In Exeter's case, they had medical certificates for 9 unfit players, which left them with just 9 fit players, two of them goalkeepers.

BUT Exeter were refused permission to call off their match against Peterborough and also their fixture against Scunthorpe 3 days later. Therefore, they played and lost their home match against Peterborough but then refused to travel to Scunthorpe to fulfil their Division 4 fixture at the Old Showground scheduled for Tuesday April 2nd.

There was speculation that Exeter's punishment might be expulsion from the Football League but later in April it was announced that the Devon side had been fined £5000 for not fulfilling the fixture and in addition were ordered to compensate Scunthorpe £1094 for the lost gate receipts and expenses. At that time, it was a massive sum of money for a moderately successful Division 4 side to pay.

Uniquely the two points (in those days the maximum award for a win) were awarded to Scunthorpe and the match was not ordered to be played.

At this time, it is the only fixture in Football League history that was never played, a record that has lasted for 45 years or even longer.............