SWINDON Town's League Two fixture away at Colchester United was postponed before a ball was kicked on Saturday due to a waterlogged pitch.

It is the first time in EFL history that an opening-day match has been postponed due to a waterlogged pitch.

The opening day of the new season was set to pit former Town boss Ben Garner against current incumbent Michael Flynn, but inclement weather put a stop to that.

Saturday's game was in doubt from around 1pm when heavy rain in the north Essex area set up camp for the day.

Members of Colchester's ground staff were seen pushing pools of water to the edge of the grass as they attempted to make the pitch playable.

Both teams' respective goalkeeper groups came out to warm-up, as several pitch inspections took place between 1pm and 2:30pm.

But not long after Swindon reluctantly emerged from the tunnel to warm up, referee Anthony Backhouse briefly wandered around the JobServe Community Stadium pitch before turning towards the tunnel and confirming the game would not take place.

A new date will be confirmed in due course as Swindon look for a first away win against the U's in seven attempts.

Town will belatedly begin their campaign on Tuesday night away against Peterborough United in the League Cup.