League champs Dandy Town were last night threatening to boycott tonight?s Friendship Trophy quarter-final penalty shoot-out with North Village after Bermuda Football Association ruled that the match would not be replayed.

Sunday?s tie at St. John?s Road ended 2-2 after extra-time but referee George O?Brien then ordered a replay rather than following competition rules which require a penalty shoot-out.

But that mistake was rectified yesterday when Bermuda Football Association announced the shoot-out would take place immediately before tonight?s Friendship and Shield doubleheader at Devonshire Rec.

However, upset by that decision, Town top brass called an emergency meeting last night at the St.John?s Road clubhouse where a decision was expected to be reached over whether or not the defending league and FA Cup champions would take part in the shoot-out.

When contacted earlier yesterday, defiant Town coach Devarr Boyles stated: ?We are not going to be participating in any penalty shoot-out! The referee calling the game after the extra time has nothing to do with us.

?We are prepared to play on even ground meaning if the referee made a mistake then that?s not necessarily our problem. It?s the association?s (BFA?s) problem and if they want to bully the clubs to warm up to take penalties, then that is ludicrous.

?I can see us warming up to play a replay but we won?t be taking part in a penalty shoot-out. Hopefully common sense prevails and a decision is made for the winners to be determined in normal time.?

While Hornets complained, Village player/coach Kentoine Jennings took the ruling in stride, insisting his troops were prepared to show up.

?We don?t have any problems with it. Really I think it would have been harder on the two teams to play another 90 minutes in terms of wear and tear,? he said.

?So we?re not trying to make a big deal over the matter because either way we are going to play or take the penalties. That?s the scenario and we?re not going to huff and puff over something so simple. We were aware of the rules and it was a mistake on the referee?s part but if that?s the rule, then that?s the rule.?

Bermuda Referee Association (BRA) president Richard Knight yesterday confirmed referee O?Brien had erred in his decision to call the match off after extra-time instead of ordering penalty kicks to be taken.

?As far as I know the game was supposed to go into penalty kicks. And if the rules of the competition state that the match should go into penalty kicks then obviously the referee was at fault,? said Knight.

?The referee should have made a point to know what the rules of the competition were and checked the rules before the game even started. He is responsible for playing the game according the the rules and regulations of the competition and it?s his responsibility to apply the rules and conditions of the game.?

BFA league and cup competitions chairman Charles Clarke concurred.

?The actual regulation state that penalties should have taken place and so a penalty shoot-out will take place tomorrow night (tonight) at Devonshire Recreation Club,? he said.

?It was just one of those situations that should have never happened. The referee was in control of the match and he was the one who made the decision. So now we will have to rectify the situation tomorrow night by having a penalty shoot-out because we want to ensure this sort of thing doesn?t happen again in the future.?

Meanwhile, Devonshire Cougars and Boulevard are set to battle for the first spot in the Friendship Trophy final tonight at the Den.

The big cats reached the penultimate phase of the 39-year-old competition via a hard-fought 4-2 win over Southampton Rangers at the Den last November, while Blazers advanced to the final four after outscoring Somerset Trojans in a penalty shoot-out under the lights at Somerset Cricket Club.

Blazers and Cougars played to an exciting 3-3 draw in the sole meeting between the two clubs so far this campaign at BAA Field.

In tonight?s preceding First Division Shield semi-final, Prospect take on Ireland Rangers.

Both clubs are coming off disappointing losses over the weekend.