Snow joke for Metz and Nice

Metz stay bottom of Ligue 1 after snowy conditions rendered their goalless draw with Nice virtually unplayable at times.Albert Cartier's side have been on the slide for some time, with this extending their winless run to 11 matches, but it was out of their hands this time as blizzard-like weather meant it was more appropriate for sledging than football at the Stade Saint-Symphorien.Nice remain in eighth place, although they too may be frustrated after they missed out on the chance to put pressure on those above them with three points.Metz got on the front foot immediately, almost catching Nice cold in the sixth minute - even if that was understandable in the circumstances.Kevin Lejeune collected Gaetan Bussmann's cross just outside the area and his shot left Nice keeper Mouez Hassen well beaten, but it also crept just wide.In the 25th minute Metz went closer still. This time Lejeune was the creator as Guirane N'Daw met his corner delivery in the six-yard box, but Hassen was alert and stopped it just short on the line.As conditions worsened, with lines of the pitch barely discernible, referee Nicolas Rainville stopped the game in the 40th minute.During an extended 30-minute half-time break, which was reportedly spent on the phone trying to get the game abandoned, snow was cleared off the pitch but it continued to fall.Attempts to call the clash off were unsuccessful and the teams re-emerged for a second half that increasingly turned into a farce as conditions deteriorated further.There was time for Nice's Neal Maupay to see red for a shove on Sylvain Marchal, but by that point it became hard to tell what was going on. The final 15 minutes petered out without incident as the snow continued to fall.