Forest Green boss Mark Cooper and Oldham’s Harry Kewell were at loggerheads after fog caused the second-half abandonment of their League Two game.

Cooper insisted referee Robert Lewis need not have ended the game in the 58th minute as fog engulfed the ground, but Kewell felt the decision was a correct one.

Rovers had earlier taken the lead through a deflected Nicky Cadden strike, but Oldham restored parity in first-half stoppage time through Zach Dearnley.

However, the start of the second period was delayed for 40 minutes as fog thickened on an already snow-kissed surface and referee Lewis eventually opted to stop the game 13 minutes into the resumption after an on-pitch talk with Cooper and Kewell.

“The referee didn’t want to play the game from the start to be honest and that’s his decision – good luck to him,” said Cooper.

“I had given up listening to him by about 3pm onwards and he just didn’t want to play the game. We wanted to play and you could see in our performance – we were outstanding and if we had been four up at half-time, nobody could have complained.”

Kewell took a different stance to Cooper and said: “You have to applaud the professionalism of both teams in difficult circumstances.

“The groundstaff had tried their very best but there were areas of the pitch that were rock-hard.

“With the fog coming in it didn’t really help the situation. In the end the ball was going up in the air and no-one could see it. A player went down injured and no-one really saw that either.

“The ref had to take into consideration the weather, the elements, and I think he made the right decision.

“The most important thing is the players’ safety and their health.

“In the first half we weren’t really at it and made them look really good. There was nothing in that first 40 minutes for me and I was kind of hoping the fog was going to come in.

“It was good to get a little glimpse of what they are capable of doing. I think that was one of their best performances and definitely one of our worst and so we can only play better, so I’m looking forward to the challenge (the rearranged fixture).”

A win would have seen Rovers leap to the summit after Newport’s game at Barrow was postponed, but they instead dropped to third after Carlisle took advantage to reach the top.

Rovers took the lead on 20 minutes when Cadden picked the pocket of Dylan Fage to burst into the box and plant a rising drive beyond the hapless Ian Lawlor.

As the fog descended, Oldham levelled deep into first-half stoppage-time as Zach Dearnley picked his spot from the edge of the box beyond Luke McGee – but it ultimately counted for nothing.