A threatened strike by clerical staff at the Football Association of Ireland has been suspended pending talks at the Labour Relations Commission.
The strike by 25 members of SIPTU had been due to take place from Monday, just five days before Ireland's crucial European Championship qualifying match against Switzerland in Basle.
The FAI had said preparations for the match would not be disrupted by the dispute. However, it yesterday welcomed SIPTU's decision to suspend the action.
The decision was taken following exploratory talks yesterday, which took place after the LRC intervened.
A SIPTU official, Mr John White, said sufficient progress was made at the talks to allow the union to suspend the strike. The discussions are to resume on Monday.
The union claims the FAI reneged on the introduction of a pension scheme after the details had been finalised. Mr Fran Rooney, the FAI chief executive, said talks had only been "close to finalisation".
Talks had been taking place over the past 18 months, with tensions rising in recent weeks over the union's refusal to negotiate with a human resources consultant brought in by the FAI to manage staffing issues.