EASTERN had their march towards the Hongkong League championship halted again last night by an opponent they are finding impossible to beat - the weather. Seven points clear at the top of the table with two games in hand on their nearest rivals, Eastern were hoping to clinch the title against Ernest Borel 10 days ago. But that match was postponed because of torrential rain which flooded the Mongkok Stadium pitch. Last night's experience was even more frustrating for the champions-elect, who were leading bottom club British Forces 1-0 when the match was abandoned six minutes into the second half with thunder rolling and lightning flashing all around the stadium. Fearing for the safety of the players - and the 715 spectators who had ventured out into the rainy evening to salute Eastern's first title since 1956 - referee Ng Chi-yung had no option but to call off the game. Eastern's next chance to wrap up the title will come on May 21, against Kitchee, because their league programme has been put on hold with most of their team on duty for Hongkong in the World Cup qualifiers in Beirut, Lebanon. Eastern striker Dale Tempest, who was captain in place of injured right-winger Lee Kin-wo, thought he had scored his 18th goal of the campaign when he headed in Paul Nixon's left-wing cross in the 37th minute to put Eastern on the road to what would have been an inevitable victory. But his efforts will count for nothing as the match will have to be re-arranged. ''It's a sickener,'' said Tempest. ''Everything has been set up twice now to win the league but once again the weather has had the final say. ''I suppose the referee has rules to stick by so you cannot be too critical of him - if anyone had been injured he would have been held responsible for allowing to play to continue. ''But this means we have five more league games to play and the FA Cup and there's already a backlog of fixtures. At this rate we'll be here until July and next season will follow straight on. ''I must admit it takes the edge off it when it finally comes. ''We hadn't played for three weeks before this match and you could see we were a bit rusty. You need games to keep match-fit and I think it would be a good idea for the Hongkong FA to play as many double-headers as possible to get the matches out of the way. ''We reported back for training on August 1 and so far we have played 13 league games.'' Shortly after Tempest's goal last night, the drizzle turned to steady rain and was joined by thunder and lightning. During the half-time interval, referee Ng told the captains that play would be halted if there was further thunder and lightning in the first five minutes of the second half. And after five minutes, with the conditions deteriorating, he stopped the game. Some of the players and officials attempted to change the referee's mind but after a five-minute wait the match was abandoned. Ng said: ''It was impossible to continue because of the thunder and lightning. There was a danger to the players, to me and my linesmen and the spectators. ''I told the captains at half-time that if it continued in the second half I would stop it.'' Eastern team manager Peter Leung, who had booked a lavish celebration dinner for his team, could not believe how the evening had ended - still with no title. ''This is the second time it's happened and we are very upset. Everyone still thought we could play but the referee didn't - and he's the top man. We cannot say 'no'.'' The Hongkong season has been disrupted by the FIFA five-a-side indoor world championship last November and faces two more breaks because of the World Cup qualifiers - in Lebanon from May 7-15 and in Seoul from June 5-13. The FA Cup final is scheduled for June 20 and Eastern are not due to complete their league fixtures until they play Sing Tao on June 24 - over nine months after their opening league game against South China on September 20.
