THE MYSTERY of a missing set of goalposts - later found in a brook sawn into three pieces - contributed to the postponement of a Hereford-shire County Cup football semi-final on Sunday.

Police have launched an investigation into the unusual act of vandalism, which dumbfounded Marden Football Club officials who initially believed they had been the victims of a bizarre theft.

On arriving for their HFA Sunday Cup semi-final with Sunday League rivals Karlo's, Marden officials mounted a search for the metal posts and discovered them in a nearby brook.

Marden co-manager Trevor Jones said: "At first, we thought that the posts must have been stolen but, after a search, we found them. We were totally amazed. The posts had been cut into three pieces and dragged into the brook. There are no scorch marks and the pieces have been cleanly cut."

Jones, who manages the Marden team with Steve Miles, added: "We can only speculate on the motives behind this - it's not something that was done on a whim.

"Marden Football Club is very popular in the village and I don't believe anyone from Marden would have a grudge against us. To drag the posts into the brook would also have taken a fair amount of effort."

Attempts were then hastily made by the match officials to switch the tie to Hereford Leisure Centre, where there was a vacant pitch. Although both teams made the trip to the Racecourse, Jones said that Karlo's refused to play.

The HFA competitions committee have asked for written statements from both clubs and will be dealing with the matter at their meeting this Monday.

Jones added: "We think that we can repair the goalposts - they can be welded - but that's not really the point.

"It's very frustrating because we desperately wanted to play the game and, in the end, we were prepared to give Karlo's a home advantage. It's frustrating because we are already facing a backlog of fixtures."

No Karlo's representative was available for comment.