It's a match many Albion fans think should already have been played.

The Seagulls face Preston at Withdean next Tuesday for the right to entertain Sheffield United in round four of the FA Cup.

Bewildered supporters are wondering why the tie did not take place as scheduled last Saturday.

An overnight thaw turned Albion's temporary abode from a frozen wasteland into the green, green grass of home.

It was virtually the only match called off in Sussex, but Lewes referee Steve Tomlin has stood firmly by his decision to postpone following a pitch inspection 27 hours before kick-off.

He has the backing of Martin Perry, Albion's chief executive. Perry says an inspection made by the club at lunchtime on Saturday revealed the pitch was still unfit.

Albion were not alone in becoming early FA Cup casualties of the Big Freeze last week.

Eight other third round ties were called off on Friday, from Wimbledon south of London to Darlington in the north-east. Four League games went the same way, including those at Brentford and Luton.

It was a different story where inspections were left until Saturday morning. Four out of five got the go-ahead, with Wycombe the only exception, although in each case the away team did not have far to travel.

The Football Association, mindful that Preston were due to leave an hour later for a flight to Gatwick, ordered an inspection of the Withdean pitch at midday on Friday.

It was impractical for match referee Rob Harris to make the journey from his home on the Isle of Wight, so Tomlin was contacted by the FA.

Tomlin said: "You look at three aspects. The first is the safety of the players, which has got to be paramount.

"The second is the professionalism of the competition. We are talking about a mulit-million pound industry and the days of a pitch being a leveller are dead and buried.

"The third thing to bear in mind is that the stadium is free from health and safety risks. You then take into account the weather forecast. I always get a printout from the Internet.

"I speak to the groundsman, because he knows the pitch better than anyone. I also speak to the stadium manager and a representative of the club, which last Friday was Bob Booker (assistant manager) to check travel and ticket arrangements for away supporters.

"You then take a look by yourself to make your own mind up. Frost in itself isn't dangerous, but if the pitch is rutted it causes problems and you cannot have half of it frozen and half of it soft. That all comes into the equation.

"No decision is ever made lightly. Last season I called off a First Division game between Watford and Burnley at ten past three with 13,500 people in the ground after the heavens opened at half past two.

"In this instance a thaw was forecast, but all the documentation I had was for it to happen on Saturday, with the temperature on Friday night down to freezing or just above. It came 12 hours early.

"What time would Preston fans have to set off for Brighton on Saturday morning? If you said seven o'clock the decision at that stage would still have been a no-go. You cannot put the professionalism of the competition or the game at stake for a what if?

"We are also dictated to by health and safety aspects. It only needs one person to slip and break a leg and you are talking about multi-million pound law suits. I stick by my decision lock, stock and barrel."

Perry estimates the postponement cost Albion between £5,000 and £10,000. "Even if a game is postponed on a Friday the programme is printed, buses are all booked, food is all prepared, road closures have been advertised and some stewards who travel a long way have been booked as well," he said.

"Also if Preston were down here in a hotel there are some expenses they could legitimately claim off us."

The loss of Albion's third match out of four at Withdean added insult to their financial injury. The club spent thousands on hiring portable pitch covers specially designed to protect from frost after the League game against Reading before Christmas was frozen off. Even they could not cope with the plummeting temperatures which also caused an early postponement of the New Year's Day fixture against Northampton.

Nevertheless, Perry is adamant Tomlin got it right. "We carried out our own inspection at lunchtime on Saturday," he revealed.

"Whilst part of the pitch had thawed, other parts on the south side were extremely hard and had not de-frosted.

"I am absolutely convinced that because of the inconsistency of the pitch and hard patches the game would still have been off.

"If the weather had changed even eight hours earlier we would have been okay, but the decision was correct."

Preston fans will now find it more difficult to make the journey on Tuesday as will many Albion supporters, especially those with children, who had tickets for last Saturday's sell-out. They are, however, entitled to a refund.

Meanwhile, the potentially damaging implications of an ever-increasing fixture pile-up for Albion have been exacerbated by the replay date. Boss Peter Taylor wanted the match played 48 hours ago, but that was vetoed by police.

Four of the other nine third round ties hit by the weather were rescheduled for this week. Four of the five put back further alongside Albion's involved clubs with other games already arranged for this week.

The Seagulls have already lost three home league matches on their original dates due to the weather and FA Cup commitments.

Another, the trip to promotion rivals Brentford scheduled for Thursday January 24 to accomodate live coverage on ITV digital, will also have to be rearranged if Albion draw or win against Preston.

They would then either be playing the third round replay at Deepdale or the fourth round tie against Sheffield United on Saturday January 26.

Albion are counting the cost in financial terms of the fixture backlog. Fans baffled by last Saturday's postponement are keeping their fingers crossed that it does not cost the Seagulls promotion as well.