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EP rugby has cancelled all fixtures for this coming weekend because disgruntled referees will be 'downing their whistles' because of ongoing harassment at club games.
EP rugby boss Cheeky Watson says they received the notification from the referees society on Wednesday.
He says the referees raised concerns over the escalating levels of verbal and physical harassment at certain club rugby matches.
"While we do not condone the method in which the referees dealt with the issue - as we have protocols in place to deal with such matters - following discussions held with representatives from the referees we have decided to cancel all games this coming weekend in sympathy with their concerns," said Watson.
He says the referees "cited threats of bodily harm and incidents where referees have been spat on and have had to be physically protected by players and executive members."
He says there was one recent instance where a referee's tyres had been slashed after a game.
"We as a union feel that this is simply unacceptable and will not condone this type of behaviour in any form whatsoever. We have already notified the clubs that all games for this coming weekend have been cancelled and have called on the clubs to address the issue of the abuse towards referees as a matter of urgency," Watson said.
He added that clubs have already been informed that they will now be responsible for the safety of the referees at any home games they host and that they needed to educate their spectators regarding their conduct at games.
"We have also made it clear that, going forward, any club that fails to address this matter will face the harshest of actions which the union can impose," said Watson.
