Euro 2016: Ukraine-Northern Ireland suspended due to hail

A hail storm stopped play during Ukraine and Northern Ireland’s Group C match at Euro 2016.

Thursday’s Euro 2016 group stage match between Northern Ireland and Ukraine has had plenty of drama due to a storm in Lyon. Inclement weather forced a brief suspension of play between the two countries. The referee forced a weather break in the wake of a storm, while Northern Ireland were up 1-0 after a header from Gareth McAuley.

Hail forced a break between the two countries, who are hoping to bounce back from opening match losses. Ukraine lost to Germany in their first match of the tournament, while Northern Ireland fell 1-0 to Poland. The Northern Irish got a short break to recover and prepare to defend their 1-0 lead at the time of the weather break.

Despite stopping the match temporarily, the weather subsided quickly enough to bring the players back onto the pitch and resume the match after a few minutes. But the suspension added an interesting wrinkle to a match between two countries looking to get back into the Group C race.

It will be interesting to see how the short break and the weather impacts the rest of the match as the rain was falling hard long before hail stopped play. With Northern Ireland in front at the time of the stoppage, you would think that the weather gives them an advantage as they look to score an upset over the Ukrainians to make a push to qualify for the knockout rounds.

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