Kinross-CYMS, languishing in ninth place, were scheduled to play Zig Zag in Lithgow from 1.30pm however the Orange side was under the impression the game was to start at 2.40pm.

Once the minimum number of Orange players - seven - was present, the two teams took the field with little more than 10 minutes left in the scheduled first half.

The Orange side fielded a full contingent of 13 in the second half but the effort was in vain - the forfeit result was already guaranteed, and recorded as a 5-nil win to Zig Zag.

“It’s just a very unfortunate situation, a miscommunication,” Kinross-CYMS inner Mel Woods said.

“All the girls in our side had a draw saying our start time was 2.40pm. The Lithgow girls showed us their draws which said 1.30pm, so there is a miscommunication somewhere along the line. We aren’t sure where yet, we are looking into it.

“We all showed up pretty much together, we were all on the same page so it’s not a mixed messages situation between our team.”

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Premier League Hockey registrar Pam Shuttle said the problem was with either side having different versions of the draw.

Shuttle explained Kinross-CYMS were working from version two of the draw, rather than the updated version three, and both draws were released prior to the season starting.

“We definitely don’t want to seem like we’re blaming anyone, especially not the Lithgow girls,” Woods said.

It’s just a massive miscommunication, we aren’t sure whether the revised draw wasn’t sent to us, or if we just didn’t get it, or what happened.

“We’ve spoken to other teams who have draws saying our game was 2.40pm as well, so it’s frustrating.”

Shuttle also suggested Kinross-CYMS could lose competition points over the incident, and Woods said the possibility of being deducted points from their already meagre total would be “demoralising”.

 LITHGOW ZIG ZAG 5 def KINROSS-CYMS 0 (forfeit)