An umpire who faced possible disciplinary action over comments he made on social media about Newcastle City and Suburban Cricket Association's handling of finances has escaped with a warning.
Michael Burns faced an executive committee hearing on Wednesday night after he was cited last month over the Facebook post, which followed a Newcastle Herald story about the association's issues.
The troubled NCSCA has suspended two board members and handed citations to a handful of others over off-field issues in recent months.
The suspensions came amid questions over spending of NCSCA money that have been raised with the board.
The Newcastle Herald has previously reported that those who have been cited or suspended believe they are being targeted after raising questions about how the operation has been run over the past several years - though association president Phil Northey has rejected this claim.
Mr Burns was cited by the NCSCA Umpires' Association - not the board - over what he posted online in December.
He said on Thursday he believed it was wrong that he was called before the committee in the first place.
"In my Facebook comment I didn't mention names," he said.
"But they reckon at the previous meeting it was said that no-one was to comment on social media and I did several days later."
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Cricket feud worsens as another board member called before judiciary
Board members Grant Hutchings and Daniel Saunders will each face a judiciary hearing on Sunday.
Both face possible action over private Facebook conversations from last March, in which offensive comments were allegedly made about another board member.
It was a conversation, which included two other NCSCA members, that was not publicly available until a copy was leaked to the association's board.
Andrew Kelly and Roy Capitao, also board members at the volunteer sporting organisation, have already been handed controversial lengthy bans.
Mr Kelly, a 36-year veteran with NCSCA, was suspended for five years last month for trying to access details of the association's Bunnings account using a false name. The move came after he found no proof of how NCSCA money was spent at the hardware store chain.
Mr Capitao was suspended for two years in August over an allegation he denies - that he tried to access and share a Google Drive document containing information about board members' fuel allowance claims.
Mr Saunders, Mr Kelly and Mr Hutchings forced the first NCSCA management committee election in more than two decades last August.
The Newcastle Herald reported last month that the association had not conducted an audit since 2004.
While it was not legally obliged to do so annually, the NCSCA constitution required one each year.
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