JEFF Mostyn has described as “quite excessive” a Football League transfer tribunal’s decision to instruct Cherries to stump up £100,000 for Marc Pugh.

Vice-chairman Mostyn and new signing Pugh yesterday attended a meeting of the Professional Football Compensation Committee in London.

The panel was convened to determine a level of compensation after Cherries and Pugh’s former club Hereford United had been unable to agree a sum.

Pugh signed a three-year deal with Cherries in July after spending just one season at Edgar Street where he finished as top goalscorer.

The Lancastrian, who started out as an apprentice with Burnley and also had a spell with Bury, had previously joined Hereford on a free transfer from Shrewsbury.

Cherries made an initial offer for the out-of-contract 23-year-old, although their valuation was dwarfed by the £150,000 price tag Hereford had placed on him.

But after hearing observations from both clubs, the Dorset outfit was told to make an initial payment of £60,000 to Hereford with a further £10,000 payable after Pugh had made 15, 30, 45 and 60 appearances.

Hereford also stand to receive 10 per cent of any profit should Pugh be sold to another club. Cherries, meanwhile, have already paid £12,500 of the initial £60,000.

Asked for the club’s reaction to the tribunal, Mostyn told the Daily Echo: “In view of all the circumstances, we were extremely disappointed with the outcome.

“Taking everything into consideration, we found the decision quite excessive.

“Marc spent a limited period with Hereford, they got him on a free transfer from Shrewsbury and there was very little input into his development, other than providing him with first-team football.”

Mostyn also felt the issue had been further clouded by a takeover at Hereford which saw previous manager and majority shareholder Graham Turner sell to new owners in the summer.

He added: “We came to an arrangement with the previous Hereford regime and new owners represented the club at the meeting. We feel we have been penalised for a lack of communication during the change of ownership.”

Pugh marked his home debut with a goal during Cherries’ 5-1 drubbing of Peterborough on Saturday and has turned in a series of eye-catching displays since joining Eddie Howe’s squad.

Mostyn added: “We are absolutely delighted to have acquired Marc. We have accepted the tribunal’s findings on the basis that there is no right to appeal. We did our utmost to represent the club and put forward a very strong case.

"We know we have got a tremendous asset in Marc and are thrilled to have him onboard. Our supporters have seen in the short space of time that he has been here that Marc is going to be a very exciting player to watch."

A statement on the Football League website said: "In setting this compensation fee, the PFCC took into account the player’s age and playing record, the length of time he was registered with his former club, development costs, the terms offered by both clubs, the status of the two clubs, previous committee decisions and the interest shown by other clubs in acquiring the registration of the player."