A non-league footballer has been sacked by his club after posting an abusive Tweet about Bournemouth midfielderHarry Arter after the Cherries' 3-3 draw with Arsenal on Tuesday evening.
Alfie Barker, who was loaned out to non-leagueCodicote FC, referred to the death of Arter's baby daughter, Renee, who was tragically stillborn back in 2015.
Disgusting what that non-league footballer said to Harry Arter last night after the Arsenal game
Hes been sacked pic.twitter.com/PDi8TTsRMf
In reference to Arter, the 19-year-oldtweeted: "Big hype just for a disappointment like the nine months leading up to your child's birth."
Barker has since issued an apology for the comments and despite claiming his account had been hacked, the player has had his Hitchin FC contract terminated with immediate effect.
His club released this statement on theirwebsite,confirming the decision: "Alfie Barker was registered to play for Hitchin Town in the Southern League and has appeared only briefly for the club in the 2016-17 season. He has been playing at Langford and Codicote on a dual registration basis.
STATEMENT - please see statement below https://t.co/JtD8CRJfmd
"The club adopts a responsible approach to social media and would expect any player connected to Hitchin Town to do likewise.
"In the light of the player's irresponsible and anti-social behaviour, we are terminating Alfie Barker's registration and relationship with the club with immediate effect."
The club's manager was also quick to condemn Barker's comments and told theBBCthat he was appalled by his player's actions.
Mark Burke said:"I've seen the tweets and I'm disgusted with them. They're vile and I can't condone them in any way."
Whilst Hitchin have been swift to act,Bournemouth have referred the matter to the FA who themselves have now launched an investigation into Barker's comments.
Any punishment dished out by the FA will only affect the player and not any of the clubs associated with him. Based on previous outcomes, Barker could well be handed a fine or given a ban from playing football altogether.