Rotherham United boss Matt Taylor on the decision to abandon today's Millers v Cardiff City match

The referee led the teams back to the dressing rooms soon after the interval when the deluge was at its height and the survival fixture was postponed 46 minutes later following a pitch inspection.

The Millers boss says players would have been at risk of injury had the match resumed.

"It was only when one of the coaches came in at half-time and told the lads to check their footwear that I realised it had started to rain," he said.

"I didn't know it had rained that hard. It was incredible and it wasn’t forecast. We were not prepared for it.

"It was farcical. The ball was getting stuck and the water was clearly not draining. That is something that cannot be helped. The postponement was the right decision."

Taylor and Cardiff counterpart Sabri Lamouchi accompanied referee Oliver Langford on the pitch inspection and the Millers man said both managers agreed with the abandonment.

However, he added that Lamouchi thought attempts by grounds staff to clear the water off the surface should have started sooner.

The Bluebirds boss left New York without speaking to the media.

The weather came to the Millers' aid as they were playing poorly and trailing 1-0 when the heavens opened.

Results elsewhere saw them remain in 20th spot - a place above Cardiff - but the gap to the drop zone was cut from five points to four.

Taylor added: “The pitch still unplayable right in the middle when we had the inspection. The water was still a couple of inches deep in the middle. The ball was not bouncing."

An EFL spokesperson said : “The circumstances surrounding the abandonment will now be considered in line with EFL regulations."

The match will be re-played some time in April.