Thousands of disgruntled fans were left disappointed last night after the Hatters' relegation showdown with Bournemouth was abandoned after little more than six minutes.

Referee Gavin Ward from Surrey and his assistants passed the pitch playable moments before the kick-off but quickly deemed the pitch dangerous and called the match off after a brief discussion with both captains and managers.

Town boss Mick Harford though felt it was the right decision and also questioned whether the game should have kicked off at all.

He said: "I think it was the right decision. The players from both teams were complaining about the run of the ball before the kick-off.

"It was dangerous and maybe it should not have got started, in my opinion. I know the fans of both teams knew the importance of the game and there was a special offer on for kids tonight."

And Harford said that his side's injury problems had no influence on his feelings about the game being abandoned. He said: "We just approached the game and wanted to get three points.

"I just feel for the supporters. They came out in their numbers tonight. The referee came over and said it's not going to get better, it's only going to get worse.

"There was no way of having a proper game of football – there's too much importance on this game to make it a lottery." He added: "They never got in our half!"

Bournemouth manager Jimmy Quinn agreed with Harford, but said calling it off was the referee's decision.

He said: "The ball wasn't travelling on the pitch. The decision was the referee's. He asked me before the game and I've played on worse pitches with no grass. If he felt it was dangerous, fair enough.

"It's disappointing for our fans travelling all that way. It's a big game for both teams. It's a bit of a lottery when you are not sure whether the ball would roll on the pitch."

The Hatters had been forced to make two changes to the team that started the 2-1 win at Bury on Saturday.

Sol Davis and Asa Hall were both ruled out through injury, so in came Paul McVeigh and Harry Worley.

McVeigh started on the left side of midfield, with Jake Howells dropping to left-back, while Worley partnered Ian Roper at the back with Michael Spillane playing alongside Rossi Jarvis in the centre of Town's midfield.

The players were struggling to cope with the conditions from the off, with the ball holding up in the snow.

Despite that, Luton made a bright start with both Spillane and Craddock going close in the fourth minute before Mr Ward brought the game to a premature end.