An amateur football cup final in the Western Isles has been postponed after referees refused to cover the match.
The stalemate is understood to have been sparked by an off-pitch fall-out earlier this month involving a local referee and a player from Lochs Football Club.
The Lochs side was due to play tonight against Westside FC in the Eilean an Fhraoich Cup final – but referees have refused to officiate because no action has been taken against the player.
The referee had reported the incident, which is not believed to be connected with football, to the Lewis and Harris Football Association (LHFA).
The Scottish Amateur Football Association (SAFA) was also informed.
A representative for referees on the island told LHFA: “Each individual referee is currently unavailable for Lochs FC games until the matter is resolved.”
Lochs FC wrote to the association stating it did not intend to take any action against the player.
The club said: “We have received representation from him indicating that the matter was in no way related to football but completely personal and they now believe that matter concluded as it has been dealt with by Police Scotland.”
They have meanwhile asked for a meeting with the LHFA and a referees’ representative to seek clarification about several issues relating to the case.
A spokesman for SAFA confirmed they are aware of the situation and are currently deliberating over the best way to deal with the stalemate.
He said: “We are aware of this matter which has been referred to us by the LHFA.
“The executive committee will look over the referral from the league and decide if any action is needed.”
LHFA has been told by SAFA that its national disciplinary committee can only deal with on-field offences, but it’s executive committee was to meet to consider if a sub-committee can deal with the matter or whether it should be left to the island association to resolve.
As a result, the Eilean an Fhraoich Cup final scheduled for tonight has been postponed until further notice.
Another Lochs FC fixture against Carloway, that was due to be played on Monday, was also cancelled.