AFTER a second postponement inside a week Clarets boss Stan Ternent wondered: "Maybe it is time for us to look at the possibility of playing summer football."

And he has acknowledged that a potential backlog of fixtures will do nothing to help the Clarets in their push for the Premier League.

For the second time in the festive period Burnley were frozen out as their promotion rivals closed the gap at the top and, having started the New Year top of the table, they now trail new leaders Manchester City by two points.

"It is frustrating," admitted Ternent. "That is two games we have had off but I think the referee got the decision right. He said he could have left it and left it before making a decision but that would then have meant mucking up the whole day for supporters.

"It is disappointing for the fans because matches on Boxing Day and New Year's Day are very popular and now they have both been called off.

"I was down at the ground at nine, the sun never got up above the stand and I could see it was frozen and the safety of the players has to be the most important thing.

"But we are going to be in a position where we are going to have to fit a lot of games into a short period of time. The season finishes early as it is because of the World Cup but every year we get this situation of games being called off left, right and centre.

"Even our undersoil heating was not enough to keep the game on.

"We are the only country in the world that plays through at this time of year and with the games having to be rearranged it creates problems for fans and teams. I am sure fans would be happy to turn up and watch games in short sleeves and then they can go away somewhere warm in the winter.

"If you have to play lots of games in a short space of time it becomes costly and fans have to choose their games.

"As for teams, you end up with injuries and suspensions and it does become difficult."

In a statement the club explained that the match had been called off at 10.15am after referee Tony Bates had ruled that the pitch was unplayable.

The undersoil heating that had been installed after the club went up to the first division had been on for three days in the hope that the match would get the go ahead.

"The ground staff worked extremely hard but the very low temperatures we have been having meant that it was still frozen," the statement continued. "We are obviously very disappointed for all the fans who wanted to see the game."

Ternent returned home to watch Birmingham City being held at home by Nottingham Forest in a match that became a lottery.

"It was farcical with players slipping and sliding all over the place," he said. "That is what it would have been like at Turf Moor because one half of the pitch was okay and the other half was dodgy.

"That makes the game a lottery and so you lose the advantage of playing at home."

The dates for the rearranged games against Rotherham United and Bradford City have yet to be announced but it is hoped that a further pile up of fixtures will be avoided by the Canvey Island FA Cup tie going ahead on Saturday as scheduled.

But if the freezing temperatures continue the undersoil heating will need to work overtime.