Scottish club to play two cup matches on same day

Scottish fifth-tier team Johnstone Burgh has to play two cup games on the same day. The matches will kick off just 30 minutes apart after the club could not change the schedule.

According to BBC Sport on Wednesday, Johnstone Burgh will play Tayport away in the Scottish Communities Cup third round at 14:30 GMT on Saturday, November 21. After that, they will head to Dunipace for the Lowland League Cup first round at 15:00. The distance between the two venues is about 65 miles.

This unusual clash makes it hard for Burgh to put together their best squad for both matches. They tried to find another date but could not succeed after looking at different options.

In a post on X, Johnstone Burgh said they worked hard to find a way to play both games outside the usual Saturday afternoon kick-off. They said, "We have explored every possible option to find a suitable solution that would allow us to play the tie outwith a Saturday afternoon as our schedule is already full."

Burgh explained that they tried to change league matches and South Challenge Cup games. They even suggested a midweek trip to Tayport and offered Friday evening or Sunday afternoon kick-offs. The club also suggested playing the Communities Cup tie right before or after their Lowland League Cup game.

To try and fix the problem, Burgh said they would give up their share of the gate money to make up for any trouble caused by changing the fixture. But none of these plans worked out.

"Despite exhausting every option available to us, we have been unable to reach a solution that allows us to play outwith a Saturday afternoon," the statement added.

The club expressed their disappointment at not being able to play both matches with their best squad. They recognized that other clubs want to keep the traditional Saturday afternoon kick-off times. "We are extremely disappointed that, despite our best efforts, we have been unable to find a reasonable solution that would allow us to compete in both games with our strongest available squad," Burgh said.

Johnstone Burgh thanked Tayport and the other teams involved for considering their proposals. They assured their supporters that they explored every possible option.

Currently, Johnstone Burgh is eighth in the newly formed Lowland League West after moving up from the West of Scotland League Premier Division. They won the Scottish Communities Cup two seasons ago when it was called the Scottish Junior Cup.

Their opponents have different league positions. Dunipace is second-bottom in the Lowland League East, while Tayport is sixth in the Midlands Premier League, which is one level lower.

All three teams have had matches postponed because of their participation in the second round of the Scottish Cup. Tayport was knocked out by Stranraer, and Dunipace lost heavily to Largs Thistle on Saturday. Johnstone Burgh’s home game against Highland League side Formartine United was also postponed and moved to the following Saturday.

With no agreement reached about the November 21 fixture clash, Burgh now has to manage two important cup matches that will start just half an hour apart.