GILLINGHAM sunk another place closer to the League 1 relegation zone following the postponement of Saturday's match against Brentford.

Referee Trevor Kettle's decision to call the game off also meant the club missed out on a healthy and much-needed pay day.

The lower divisions were badly effected by the freezing weather but yeovil's 3-0 win at Chesterfield was enough to see the Gills drop to 19th place, just two points and two places above the drop zone.

Club chairman Paul Scally acknowledged the decision to cancel the game was out of his hands.

He said: "If that's what the referee says then that's his decision. It's the business we're in and it costs us money but I don't have any control over that."

Mr Scally used the time to continue to work on the club's finances and he was hoping to go public with the findings soon, although the club is expected to announce losses.

He added: "It's a very difficult business at the moment and this doesn't help financially that's for sure, but these things are sent to try us. When things go bad they seem to go bad in all areas.

"We're working towards a conclusion every day and I'm fully confident that in March I should have something to say."

Mr Kettle assessed the Priestfield playing surface on Saturday morning, along with the assistant managers of both clubs, and it was decided that the pitch was unlikely to thaw in some areas.

He said: "It was decided to call the game off in the interests of player safety."

Gills boss Ronnie Jepson was left frustrated at the postponement because he was hoping to mastermind an end to the club's five game winless streak.

Jepson said: "I'm very disappointed as we have worked hard on the training ground all week. It's a real shame because we were looking forward to the match and a big crowd was expected."