On Sunday (12th September) our Ladies entered the Women’s FA Cup Competition in a proud moment for our club and supporters, the first time in the history of Olveston United AFC that we have been represented in this historic competition. An local derby against neighbours Almondsbury Ladies added an element of excitement in what we all hoped would be a memorable day.

For 92 minutes our Ladies produced a fantastic display, matching their higher league opponents stride for stride and were more than deserving of their 3-2 lead as they headed into injury time. However, with two minutes to go an Almondsbury player suffered a medical incident on the pitch and play was rightly halted so the player could receive emergency treatment and allow an Ambulance to attend.

After a 30 minute pause in play the Ambulance left and the referee sought to restart play and conclude the final two minutes of the tie, giving both teams a 10 minute warm up. Our ladies began to warm up but Almondsbury refused to restart the match with their players walking off the pitch leaving the referee no choice but to abandon the game. The decision was then passed to the FA for their verdict.

The verdict was received at 16:52 on Tuesday 14th September. The decision concluded that neither Club was at fault for causing the match to be abandoned and as the match had not been completed in its entirety the result at the time at which the match was abandoned in the 92nd minute should not stand as the result of the match. The match should be replayed in its entirety at Almondsbury Ladies.

Having read and digested the content of the decision letter we as a club were bitterly disappointed by the FA’s decision and subsequently held discussions via email and phone with Chris Darnell, FA Competition Manager but acknowledged the decision to be final and binding. In light of the decision to force the tie to be replayed in its entirely and following discussions between our Chairman, Committee members and Ladies Management team we have declared to the FA our intentions to withdraw from the competition with immediate effect under rule 11v.

Our Ladies league match on the 19th September was postponed by the Gloucestershire County Womens Football League to allow their opposition (Longlevens) to attend their Mens FA Cup tie, as a result some of the players had made other plans, some are emergency workers and need more than 3 days notice to take leave and several players were injured during the 1st match on Sunday meaning the Ladies were unable to raise a side and could field just 7 players, As a result they simply could not fulfil the rescheduled fixture.

We spoke to Chris (FA Competition Manager) regarding this on the phone and requested dispensation to play the fixture in the week commencing 20/09 of which we were advised rule 11iv does not permit this. As stated above we wholeheartedly disagree with this decision and the reasons given by the sub-committee but we would still have looked to fulfil the fixture again, however with this decision and the decision to force the tie to be played this weekend (19th September) we have been backed into a corner and left with no alternative but to withdraw.

As a club we feel the FA’s decision to force the match to be replayed in its entirety does set a dangerous precedent for teams moving forwards and leaves a really bad taste in our mouths in what promised to be a memorable FA Cup debut with a win against higher league opponents. Our ladies, for 92 minutes had earned the right to be the next round, instead this has been denied to them.

As a club we felt that the result should stand or at a minimum reconvene to complete the final two minutes of the game. The FA did not share this view.

Had this situation been reversed and it was our player who was affected with Almondsbury winning 3-2 in the 92nd minute, we as a club unanimously agreed that we would have requested the referee blow the whistle and declare the result. After all, as Almondsbury pointed out in their statement after the game, there is more to life than football. We are disappointed that this view has not been taken by Almondsbury.

Thank you to every club, every referee and every individual that has sent messages of support both privately and publicly in relation to the apparent unfairness that has resulted from this unfortunate situation. We have read them all and while we may not have responded we do appreciate them. While the record books wont show it, our ladies can be proud of their first FA Cup win.

Finally, we would like to pay tribute to the incredible work that Mark Butt (Ladies Assistant Manager) did on the day in being first on the scene and treating the player along with former Almondsbury Manager Garry Ford who joined from the stands to support until the Ambulance arrived to take over.

We wish Forest Green Rovers Women best of luck in the next round and are pleased to hear that the Almondsbury player is recovering well.