Johnstone Burgh face two cup ties at once after fixture clash

Scottish fifth-tier club Johnstone Burgh face playing two cup ties at the same time on Saturday, 21 November, after efforts to rearrange either fixture failed.

Burgh are due to visit Tayport in the Scottish Communities Cup at 14:30 GMT, then Dunipace in the Lowland League Cup 30 minutes later. The grounds are 65 miles apart, leaving the club unable to field the same squad for both matches.

The club said it had tried to move the games to a weekday, Friday evening or Sunday, rearrange other fixtures, or play the Communities Cup tie immediately before or after the Dunipace match. It also offered to forgo its share of the gate receipts to help meet any costs caused by a change.

Burgh said in a statement that it had been unable to find a solution that would allow the tie to be played outside Saturday afternoon. It said it was “extremely disappointed” that it could not compete in both games with its strongest available squad, while thanking Tayport and other clubs for considering its proposals.

All three clubs have already had matches postponed after reaching the second round of the Scottish Cup. Burgh’s home tie against Highland League side Formartine United, originally postponed, has been rescheduled for this Saturday.