STUDLEY only managed to play six minutes of their Midland Combination clash with Copsewood before a severe bout of hailstones sent everyone scurrying to the stand.

Surprised Studley boss Paul Smith insisted: “It was surreal. I’ve never seen hailstones quite like it. They just came down completely out of the blue. The players didn’t even bother waiting for the referee, they just legged it to the stand as the changing rooms at Copsewood are some distance from the pitch.

“It was quite comical in a way, because the players from both teams were huddled together for about 10 minutes before the hailstones stopped.”

Studley host second-placed Nuneaton Griff this Saturday without suspended pair Ben Judd and Charisma Agbonlahor after an ill-feted cup clash at Bustleholme.