KINGSTON, Jamaica — The ISSA football competition will resume on Monday after Saturday’s slate of 30 games across the daCosta Cup and Manning Cup competitions were not played due to strike action by members of the Jamaica Football Referees Association (JFRA).

Ewan Scott, the ISSA competitions coordinator, said late Saturday that following a meeting between both bodies, the referees had decided to resume on Monday.

Games that were set to be played on Saturday will now be played on Monday. Scott added, “If there are any conflicts, the relevant changes will be made to the other matches, and the revised schedule will be circulated as soon as possible.”

Saturday’s full day of games was cancelled after match officials informed ISSA of their serious concerns about the safety of their members following three incidents spanning from the end of last season to the present.

In a letter from the JFRA to ISSA, reportedly signed by JFRA president Valdin Ledgister, the referees listed three serious incidents since last season, during which their members were attacked—twice by players and once by members of the public—and requested a meeting “to review the security protocols in place for the competition and to provide support for all members as we seek to plan for the remainder of the competition.”

READ: Football Referees Association demand urgent meeting with ISSA amid security concerns

Assistant referee Richard Ball reportedly had to seek medical attention after he was struck in the chest by a missile thrown during a daCosta Cup Zone A game played at Maldon High on September 14. Last week, “three match officials—Christopher Bailey, Robert DaSilva, and Oshane Williams—were physically assaulted and threatened by registered players of Dinthill Technical High School, who were seemingly out of control and posed a serious threat to the referees on the day in question,” the letter said.

Additionally, they pointed out that at last season’s ISSA Champions Cup final, “there was an unfortunate incident involving a Clarendon College player and FIFA Official Steffon Dewar,” the letter, signed by Ledgister, added.

“After an intense discussion (on Friday evening), the members were unanimous in their view that the disciplinary sanctions imposed will not adequately address the safety concerns of the traumatized members of the affected referee groups. In fact, the latest incidents are indeed a serious cause for concern and highlight critical security issues that threaten the safety of our members,” the letter concluded.

—Paul A. Reid