NEWS | The Green and Piper archives

Over the next few weeks, club president and former player Stewart Piper along with life member Ray Green will talk us through moments they have been involved in throughout their time at the club.

In this edition, Ray discusses when the goalposts fell down at half-time of a game against York City Knights at Belle Vue in February 2003.

He said: "The half time hooter had just gone, the players were walking off the pitch and I was making my way to the boardroom when someone shouted that the posts had fallen down, I laughed, looked back and was amazed to see the goal-post and crossbar on the floor.

"Quickly making my way onto the pitch, with a couple of people I got hold of, I also sent for the groundsman. The posts were new microlight ones and supposed to be easy to be put up and take down but after the first game in which they were used we had problems with water getting into the sockets in the ground after heavy rain, so the groundstaff drilled a couple of holes in each post to let the water run out."

That wasn't the end of the issue for Ray though, who was battling against the elements in order to ensure the game would continue.

He added: "We had to contend with heavy gusts of wind that were causing the posts falling down. That's bad but it got worse, with the damage to the post we had to do some quick repairs but the groundsman didn't have any tools.

"I asked is there anyone in the ground who might be able to help - imagine the embarrassment when the guy on the PA announced: is there anyone in the ground with a hacksaw or allen keys?

"The ground was in uproar but we managed to get them back up after a 20 minute delay. The crossbar was at an angle but everyone agreed to carry on."

The work was well worth it for Ray and colleagues, as the Dons went on to win the game 24-4, after a double from Simon Irving, along with tries from James Walker, Brad Hepi and Chris Ross.