Motherwell boss Stuart Kettlewell revealed that both his staff and Partick Thistle's management struggled to find Ricco Diack's name on the digital team sheet during their goalless Premier Sports Cup match at Fir Park.
Thistle's head coach, Kris Doolan, was unable to substitute the young striker because the fourth official, Greg Soutar, couldn't locate Diack on the list.
This issue arose from the new app-based system, Comet, recently introduced by the Scottish Football Association.
Partick Thistle needed a win to advance into the last-16, while Motherwell moved on to face Kilmarnock in the next round.
“I understand how the mistake occurred,” Kettlewell explained. “We normally write down the starting XI and the subs from the oppositions, so we’ve got something set in front of the players as we’re building up to the game.
“We didn’t have Diack’s name on the subs list and I questioned the analyst, who’s shouting out the names to me, because I knew that he’s always on the bench, he’s generally not a starter.
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“I asked him why he wasn’t there and then he scrolled down and you could see that his name was below the list of subs but is actually on the team line.
“So whether it be human error, whether it be the teething problems that we have with a new system – I do sympathise with them, of course I do.
“We had a situation, in Montrose I think, where a player wasn’t listed. We asked the officials and they said that he was listed.
“So there’s quite clearly one or two issues that need to be resolved before we start.
“I don’t think a manager should ever be put in a position where he’s debating and I know, through speaking to Kris, it was almost well ‘you can put them on if you want’.
“I don’t think managers should be put in that position, nor do I think that managers should ever have to be in a position where officials are telling them ‘go and check your team line on a phone’.”
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Partick Thistle had demanded answers from the relevant Scottish footballing authorities in a strong worded statement, and even asked for the tie to be replayed.
However, after being told by the SFA that it was because of "human error" and rules state matches cant't be relived in that circumstances, the Maryhill-based club accepted the apology.
They said: “While everyone at the club remains deeply frustrated by this situation, we reluctantly accept the explanations offered and, again reluctantly, consider the matter closed.
“What is always important in such situations is that lessons are learned for the future which is not only important for Partick Thistle but also for our fellow clubs across Scotland and the wider integrity of Scottish football and its supporters.
“We are grateful that both the SPFL and Scottish FA have confirmed they have taken steps to ensure that this does not happen again.”
