Tuesday 26 January 2016 15:10, UK
St Johnstone chairman Steve Brown has criticised the SPFL over the distribution of tickets for Saturday's League Cup semi-final.
Saints, who will face Championship side Hibernian at Tynecastle, had been hoping for extra tickets for the Main Stand.
But just five days before the tie, the SPFL has released the tickets to Hibs following consultation with Police Scotland.
Brown is unhappy with the way the SPFL has handled the situation, coming a week after the ruling bodies in Scottish football agreed there should be better communication with supporters.
The statement from Brown read: "The first thing I want to say is that I fully share in the frustration caused by the delay in the announcement not to allocate Main Stand tickets to Saints fans and I can understand the anger and disappointment of ticketless fans.
"I can assure supporters that from the outset, these Main Stand tickets were intended for St Johnstone fans.
"However, with increased concerns about access, egress and segregation arrangements in that corner of the ground being raised by safety and security staff at Tynecastle and Police Scotland, the SPFL took the decision that the final approval for the release of these tickets to St Johnstone would be delayed in order to gauge sales of Main Stand tickets by Hibernian FC and maximise the chances of an alternative segregation and operational arrangement within the Main Stand.
"Coming at a time when fan engagement has been recently stated as a key objective for the future of our game, I find the timing of this decision - five days before the match - outrageous and I would state that this is totally unacceptable to St Johnstone Football Club.
"I would hope that lessons are learned from this fiasco in order to avoid any repeat of the uncertainty and disillusionment suffered by the people who matter most - the supporters."
St Johnstone, who are aiming to win the League Cup for the first time, last reached the semi-final of the competition two years ago when they lost 4-0 to Aberdeen at Tynecastle.
Hibernian will be the third Championship side Tommy Wright's men have faced in this season's tournament after 3-1 victories over Rangers and Morton in previous rounds.
