A member of the Carlisle United supporters trust board says he has resigned in the wake of mixed messages over the co-opting of a new board member.

Mark Middling says he has stepped down from CUOSC and took "whole responsibility" for the situation which followed some seemingly contradictory comments over the situation.

The trust have faced questions and criticism from fans after announcing a new board member had been co-opted - only to say later that this was not the case.

After making an initial statement on Twitter last night, the trust today gave a further response after the News & Star invited them to clarify the matter.

They said the fan, Paul Halliday, was indeed co-opted at a meeting last Wednesday, only for him to ask for more time before this would be the case.

They said they did not disclose this at a subsequent members' meeting to protect Halliday's privacy - only for the information to appear in an emailed briefing.

But Middling, in a tweet on Sunday night, said there had been no discussion last Wednesday about co-opting Halliday.

That appeared to be contradicted by CUOSC's latest statement today.

And Middling told fans on Twitter that he has now resigned, and that his tweet had been designed to "protect" Halliday.

He also issued a statement in which he apologised and accepted responsibility for the incident.

He added, meanwhile, that "increasing criticism from certain detractors" in the fanbase was "becoming unbearable" and affecting his mental health.

And he said if "loud detractors" put themselves forward for CUOSC board positions they would realise that much of the criticism they face is "unnecessary and unfair."

Supporters had challenged the trust to explain why the "unanimous" co-option of Halliday was confirmed in minutes of a CUOSC board meeting held last Wednesday, only for this not to be revealed to members at a meeting the following day - and then followed by a statement on Sunday saying Halliday was not on the board after all.

Their statement issued to the News & Star said: "The co-opting took place on Wednesday evening in Paul's absence.

"On Thursday, Paul said he would like to see how things worked out before being co-opted, but would still help out CUOSC.

"He asked before the meeting for the co-opting not to be disclosed and therefore this wasn't discussed at the members' meeting out of respect for Paul's privacy.

"Unfortunately, the minutes [of Wednesday's board meeting] were not updated to reflect this position before being sent out to members.

"To confirm, at this stage Paul has not been co-opted on the board."

Middling, a senior lecturer in accounting who had been on the trust board for more than a year, had posted on Twitter on Sunday night that "there was a vote in the [Wednesday] meeting, very close to the discussion of Paul, but not regarding Paul's co-option."

Asked why moves had been made to co-opt Halliday in the first place, CUOSC added that they had been talking to the supporter since a previous members' meeting after he expressed a desire to join the trust and help - including, in theory, joining the board at some stage.

They added that they hope he will agree to be co-opted eventually "because we believe this is a good way of learning the workings of CUOSC."

Supporters have criticised the trust on social media over the confusion, after the Wednesday meeting minutes were circulated in CUOSC's weekly briefing to members on Sunday.

The trust issued a statement "apologising for the confusion" and stating that Halliday was simply helping "with a view to being co-opted at a later date".

Wednesday's meeting minutes said: “Paul Halliday had expressed an interest in joining the board. His co-option was proposed by Nigel [Davidson] and seconded by Norman [Steel]. He was unanimously co-opted on to the board until the date of the 2022 AGM. Paul was offering to help improve our social media presence but had other areas in which he could contribute.”

READ MORE: Carlisle United supporters' trust CUOSC facing questions amid confusion over new board member