Exclusive: Ipswich Town should give Blackburn Rovers a goal in rearranged fixture - Sky pundit urges Kieran McKenna rethink | OneFootball

Lee Hendrie has spoken to FLW about Ipswich not willing to entertain giving Blackburn a one-goal advantage during their rearranged match.

Sky Sports pundit Lee Hendrie has disagreed with Ipswich Town’s decision to not give Blackburn Rovers an immediate lead during their rearranged fixture at Ewood Park, believing it would have been a ‘fair statement’ for the Tractor Boys to do so.

The fallout from the abandoned EFL Championship game from two weeks ago has continued in recent days, with Rovers making a demand to the EFL when the fixture is rearranged at Ewood Park in due course.

Valerien Ismael’s men found themselves 1-0 up against the Tractor Boys with just over 10 minutes to play, before a torrential downpour saw the surface at Ewood Park deemed unplayable, and the game was subsequently abandoned.

It was later revealed by the EFL that the fixture would be replayed in full, which saw Blackburn boss Ismael label the decision as "disgraceful".

The Lancashire-based side were rather expectedly furious about the decision from the EFL, and according to a report by journalist Alan Nixon, the club have requested in an email to the authorities that the Tractor Boys should give them a goal in the replay, as a way of making the contest as fair as possible.

But in response, Kieran McKenna’s men have reiterated that they will not consider giving their opponents a one-goal head start when the teams clash again in Lancashire, as per a tweet from Sky Sports.

With this news in mind, ex-Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has commented on whether Ipswich have made the correct decision.

Lee Hendrie disagrees with Ipswich Town goal stance

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Sky Sports pundit Lee Hendrie has outlined his discontent at Ipswich Town’s decision to not give Blackburn Rovers a goal during their rearranged fixture, believing Kieran McKenna would have made Rovers’ demand if the Tractor Boys were winning the original game.

Hendrie said: “The game was canceled due to the weather conditions. It’s one of those situations where there’s not a lot you can do about it.

“If the shoe’s on the other foot, you want the goal to be in the game, I think it should be really, to be honest. If it’s got that late where the game was, then I do think, if anything, then they (Blackburn) should have a goal start. Ipswich would still have the opportunity to get back into the game.

“I think that would be a fair statement and both managers, if the shoe was on the other foot, then they’d say ‘yeah, definitely’, but it doesn’t seem to be that way.”

Blackburn Rovers, Ipswich Town saga must end after EFL outcome

As much as everybody connected with Blackburn Rovers will feel horrified by the outcome of replaying the match, there’s nothing either club can do about it as the decision rested with the EFL authorities.

The EFL have also not handed Ipswich an obligation to gift Blackburn a one-goal lead, so they shouldn’t be entertaining it as they would be giving themselves more work to do to try and gain maximum points out of the contest.

While fairness and sportsmanship have been questioned about Ipswich in recent days, they’re not to blame for Blackburn not keeping their pitch in order to deal with these situations, while it could be argued that the treacherous conditions played a big part in Blackburn gaining the penalty that gave them the 1-0 lead in the first place.

It was a game that needed stopping well before it was, and hopefully it can now be played again in conditions that provide a fair game for everybody and doesn't endanger player safety.

Regardless, Blackburn and Ipswich both have more immediate priorities to focus on in the Championship before their rearranged clash at Ewood Park, and this saga should be put to bed, so both sides can fully concentrate on their upcoming games ahead.