Waterford United must wait until Tuesday to find out who they will face in the National League promotion/relegation play-offs after Mr Justice Finnegan yesterday told representatives of Dundalk, Kilkenny City and the League of Ireland that he will not be able to deliver his judgment on the evidence presented to him in the High Court until then.

The league have now scheduled the games, due to be played today and on Monday, for next Wednesday and Saturday. This is the third time they have been put back, and the two First Division clubs involved in the dispute will have to prepare for the games in the hope that Tuesday's decision goes their way.

Both sides said last night that they were hopeful about the outcome after a long day in court, during which all three sides presented starkly different interpretations of how the league's rule book was and should have been employed to sort out what has been a difficult dispute.

With the matter now going back to the High Court for a fourth day on Tuesday, the judge's views on the matter of costs might end up being almost as important as his findings on the main issue itself.

The court proceedings concern the claim by Dundalk that Kilkenny should not have been allowed to replay their First Division game against Limerick last week. The result helped Kilkenny into a promotion play-off with Waterford.

Dundalk alleged that Kilkenny included a player, Fran Carter, who was not eligible to play for the club when they met Limerick last November. Kilkenny won the match, but subsequently the league deducted three points from them.

Kilkenny then issued legal proceedings against the league. It was agreed to appoint an arbitrator, and he decided the game should be replayed.

Martin Giblin SC, for the Dundalk club, told Mr Justice Finnegan the decision to allow Kilkenny to replay the match meant that Dundalk had been deprived of getting into the playoffs and this would have incalculable consequences for the club.

He said the manager of even the most humble club in Ireland knew that a player must sign his registration form, and that there could be no question of it being done by proxy, as was being suggested in Kilkenny's case. Such a situation could lead to chaos.

James Rhatigan, secretary of Kilkenny FC, in an affidavit said they played Fran Carter on November 19th, and the first inkling that there might be a problem came the day after the game. No opportunity was given to the club to make representations regarding the legitimacy of the transfer or to address league officers on the matter of penalty.

Rhatigan said the Kilkenny manager, Pat Byrne, had claimed he had signed Carter's name with the player's authority.

Donal Crowther, executive secretary of the league, said it was important that players who were registered to play for a particular club comply strictly with registration procedures. The League of Ireland took a serious view of the obligations of players to properly register their allegiances with clubs.

He fully accepted that Byrne had been open and honest about the manner in which the transfer took place, but there had been a clear breach of the rules.

Liam Reidy SC, for the Kilkenny club, said the appropriate and practical solution was for the court to abide by the decision of the arbitrator.

Michael O'Donnell BL, for the Eircom League, suggested that the rules were a "sporting code".

Mr Justice Finnegan intervened to say that soccer was now big business and nothing like it had been 40 years ago.

O'Donnell said that the rules could not be interpreted in the same manner as a piece of legislation. The whole spirit of the rules provided for non-judicial remedies to resolve disputes. This was not an appropriate case where the court should be involved.

The league might not have been happy with the arbitrator's decision, he said, but believed they were bound by it.

The Irish women's team takes on Scotland at Richmond Park this afternoon (1.30 p.m.) as part of their qualification campaign for the European championships.