Police Recreation Club have been declared winners of last month?s ill-fated Combined Knockout Cup quarter-final clash with Somerset Bridge ? after not a single ball was tossed down the pitch.

Bermuda Cricket Board (BCB) yesterday confirmed the men in uniform had been awarded the twice-postponed match against their First Division rivals and, as such, have advanced to Sunday?s semi-finals where they will meet Premier Division side Bailey?s Bay at Police Field.

However, the Board?s decision has left Bridge, who insist their team should have been awarded the match instead, up in arms.

Bridge coach Treadwell Gibbons sr claimed yesterday that umpires failed to show up for the original July 11 clash at White Hill Field and that Police only turned up with seven players.

A request to secure the services of an umpire at nearby Somerset Cricket Club was then denied by Bermuda Cricket Umpires Association (BCUA) president George Francis, said Gibbons.

Police, however, claim the pitch at White Hill was not adequately prepared.

In an effort to resolve the matter swiftly, BCB officials notified both clubs the game would be rescheduled for July 23 at the same venue. Bridge, though, refused to take to the field for that clash, arguing instead that Police should have been penalised for showing up with only seven players for the initial match.

?Police showed up with only seven men, stayed there for 20 minutes and then left claiming there were no umpires,? Gibbons argued yesterday.

?Somerset Bridge officials went to Somerset looking for umpires and those guys (Police) left knowing fully well we had gone looking for an umpire.?

BCUA chief Francis confirmed a verbal request had been made on behalf of Bridge just prior to the start of the match he was officiating at Somerset Cricket Club.

?Just before the game started someone from Bridge asked could one of us (Anthony Fubler or myself) come down to do their match,? he told ?But their request was declined and as far as assignments are concerned, I don?t know who was supposed to be there (White Hill).?

Gibbons said another umpire, Red Burrows, eventually showed up at White Hill to officiate the match. But by then, he claimed, Police players had long left the ground ? claims a Police spokesperson denied.

?I can tell you the team did not show up with only seven players on the eleventh (July 11),? the spokesperson told

?The decision (final ruling) was made by the BCB. A memo had been sent to Bridge telling them the game would be replayed and whatever they decided to do is on them.?

When asked how many Police players actually showed up for the match, the spokesperson replied: ?I know it wasn?t seven. We had enough players to play and seven is enough to play, so that?s neither here nor there.?

Police skipper Ferdinand Thorne declined to comment when contacted yesterday.

BCB secretary Marc Weatherhill yesterday declared Police the victors.

?The umpires? report (from the rescheduled match) indicated Somerset Bridge refused to take to the field therefore the Board deemed them to have defaulted the match, allowing Police to advance,? he said, adding: ?The match on July 11 between Police and Somerset Bridge was rescheduled after no umpires showed up and both clubs had that information communicated to them the following day.?

As for allegations made by opposing sides concerning the readiness of the pitch and player shortages, Weatherhill stated: ?All of the concerns raised do not erase the one overriding fact there were no umpires present. That?s the decision the Board reached and I don?t think it is incumbent on them to start getting in the middle of a he said, she said competition.?

Still, Bridge coach Gibbons believes the BCB might have jumped the gun in reaching their decision.

?They were not interested in finding the real facts concerning the matter,? he argued. ?So we refused to play because had it been anybody else other than Bridge, then Police would have lost that game.

?We are protesting because those guys (Police) left and this was included in the report the BCB have. But they haven?t replied or nothing like that and I think it?s about time these people start respecting Bridge.?

Meanwhile, Southampton Rangers take on Somerset in this weekend?s other Combined KO Cup semi-final at Southampton Oval.