Barnsley FC removed from FA Cup after fielding an ineligible player

The FA Cup trophy. Photo / AP

English football club Barnsley have been kicked out of this season’s FA Cup for fielding an ineligible player.

The third-division team said an “administrative error” was to blame for fielding the unnamed player in their first round replay against Horsham on Nov. 14. Barnsley won the game 3-0.

“The club has fully cooperated with the investigation and has accepted the FA’s decision,” Barnsley said in a statement. “We would like to apologise to our fans, players and staff for this regrettable error. This mistake — although unintentional — falls way below the high standards we set at this club and is simply not what you deserve.”

The FA said non-league club Horsham had been reinstated in the competition and has advanced to the second round, where it will play fourth-division team Sutton on Dec. 2.

Premier League teams enter the FA Cup in the third round.

Neither the FA nor Barnsley immediately responded to requests to identify the player, who the governing body said was ineligible because he had not been “correctly” registered in time for the original game on Nov. 3, which ended in a 3-3 draw.

“Barnsley admitted this charge and acknowledged that the breach had occurred,” the FA said.

Barnsley said they had conducted an internal investigation and “put safeguards in place to ensure this will never happen again.”