The world’s oldest-running scramble has been axed for this year as the land is not available. The traditional Boxing Day scramble is a one-hour thrash through streams and bogs and will make a comeback in 2020, says the organising Northampton club. The club’s announcement reads:

It is with regret that I have to relay bad news on this year’s Wild & Woolly. Recently we were informed by the landowner that we could not use the normal venue at Arm Farm. This is due to a combination of the continuing wet weather, some unforeseen environmental issues and the effects of the ever encroaching rail freight terminal.

Despite weeks of negotiations which looked promising at times, we’ve been unable to change this decision. With no other local venue available to us, the club has made the difficult decision of having to cancel this year’s event. The committee are extremely conscious of the long heritage of this race, and as a result the decision was made with a heavy heart.

The 94th Wild & Woolly will have to wait until 2020, when we’ll back to carry on the legacy.