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Warning over behaviour as Caithness amateur player gets eight-month ban





Grant MacNab (centre) celebrating a goal for Wick Groats last summer. MacNab later signed for Staxigoe United. Picture: James Gunn
Grant MacNab (centre) celebrating a goal for Wick Groats last summer. MacNab later signed for Staxigoe United. Picture: James Gunn

The governing body of amateur football in Caithness has warned that threatening behaviour is not acceptable after a local player was handed an eight-month ban.

The suspension for Grant MacNab was imposed at a hearing held by the Scottish Amateur Football Association (SAFA) and is effective from June 11, 2023, to February 11, 2024.

After the completion of this "dated suspension", the 31-year-old midfielder will resume a separate 16-match Caithness Amateur Football Association (CAFA) ban of which seven games are still to be served. The CAFA suspension is "for several different offences, not one single incident".

The disciplinary procedures relate to MacNab's actions last year when he was playing for Wick Groats. He has since signed for Staxigoe United.

A county league fixture between High Ormlie Hotspur and Wick Groats in August was called off by referee Liam Bremner after he had shown two red cards to MacNab during the half-time break. Groats had been trailing 1-0.

The Wick club apologised at the time and said that "no official should ever feel threatened".

In a statement this week, CAFA said: "We are content this has now been dealt with by SAFA and would like to remind all players and officials that any forms of threatening or abusive behaviour towards match officials (or fellow players and club officials) will not be tolerated."

The half-time abandonment at Morrison Park in Halkirk cast a shadow over the climax of the 2022 first division campaign, although it did not prevent the trophy being presented to Pentland United after they won at home against Wick Thistle on the same night.

A few weeks later it was confirmed that the abandoned match would not be replayed and that the High Ormlie v Groats result would stand at 1-0. It meant runners-up Groats finished the campaign three points behind Pentland United.


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