Dagenham & Redbridge boss John Stillwas disappointed by the pitch at the Globe Arena and felt without the free entry offer, the game would have been called off.

Dagenham & Redbridge boss John Still was disappointed with the playing conditions at Morecambe’s Globe Arena on Tuesday night, as his side went down 2-1.

The Shrimps granted free entry to all fans and attracted an attendance of 4,029 – their largest of the season and way above the 1,961 average.

And Still believes the big turnout saw the game go ahead, whereas if it were a regular fixture the match may well have postponed.

“I thought we did okay,” said Still. “But it is one of those situations where had it been a normal fixture with around 1,600 then it may not have gone ahead.

“In my opinion it was borderline playable. The area around the dugouts was definitely unplayable, while other areas may have just been okay.

“Had it not been for the free entry the game probably would have been called off. When we got there we was shocked.”

The Daggers have played five games in a hectic 14-day period and went into Tuesday’s fixture fresh from playing at Accrington on Saturday on another heavy pitch.

Both of those factors were reasons behind Sam Williams’ absence and Still believes his side missed the presence of their leading goalscorer.

“We were without Sam and at the start of the season he was the most important player behind Dwight Gayle,” added the manager. “And with this being the second heavy pitch in succession there wasn’t enough recovery time for Sam. He was out for a long spell last season with injury, so we have to be careful, but we definitely missed his hold-up play.”