Wanderers officials have stepped in to help a couple who were furious after being refused a refund for their tickets to their team's cancelled FA Cup match.

Peter Connor and his partner Donna Bond, of Glynne Street, Farnworth made a 450-mile round trip to watch the Wanderers take on Tottenham last week.

But only 40 minutes after they paid £30 each for the two tickets, the game was cancelled because of a water-logged pitch.

The pair asked for a refund but officials at Tottenham said they were one of the few Premier League clubs which does not issue them.

Instead, the couple were told to take their tickets back to Bolton where staff at the Reebok would recompense them.

Wanderers officials initially said they could not offer a refund on Tottenham's behalf. But after the BEN contacted the Reebok Stadium, officials decided to give the couple a refund in a one-off gesture.

Peter's father, also called Peter, said: "I think it is pretty shabby treatment. If the match had been abandoned after 40 minutes or so, okay, but these people must have had a good idea that the match was going to be called off.

"Donna and Peter travelled all that way in lousy weather to support their team. It makes me wonder -- is football a sport, a game or simply a business?"

Donna said: "I want to know why we were allowed to purchase tickets if there was any doubt about the match going ahead.

"It states on the back of the ticket that there will be no refunds for matches that are cancelled or postponed but there is no way of knowing that until you have bought a ticket."

A Wanderers spokesman said: "Because they purchased the ticket from Tottenham, in theory the couple should get a refund from Tottenham. In this instance we will give them a refund but it is not something we will do in the future."

No one at Tottenham Football Club was available for comment.