YOUTH football bosses are investigating a former match secretary who was caught downloading child abuse images.

Ryan Cullen, 25, was spared jail after admitting downloading indecent images of children, and was put on the sex offenders’ register for three years.

Cullen was the match secretary for the Dunbartonshire Youth Football Development League (DYFD), in West Dunbartonshire - now known as the Dunbaronshire Youth Football League,

He was also involved in Clydebank Boys Club, but left more than four years ago.

The Scottish Youth Football Association (SYFA) has now launched a probe due to the pervert’s connection with youth football clubs.

Cullen’s defence brief claimed he had ‘been having difficulty with coming to terms with and accepting his sexuality’ when he viewed the vile images.

Cops raided Cullen’s home in Linnvale, West Dunbartonshire, on November 27 2018 and seized a hard drive, a tower unit and a laptop.

Some of the pictures discovered were the worst kind, Category A, but there were also Category B and C images and videos nearly an hour long.

Cullen pleaded guilty on October 1 to two charges relating to the creation and possession of indecent images of children at a property in Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire between June 2015 and November 2018.

He returned to be sentenced at Dumbarton Sheriff Court last week, where social workers deemed he was suitable for community-based punishment.

Sheriff Gallacher put Cullen on a three-year community payback order which will see him supervised by social workers until 2022.

There is a conduct requirement for inspection of any electronic device and he must not delete any of his browsing history.

Cullen must also do 250 hours of unpaid work within nine months.

The SYFA suspended Cullen in January following notification from Disclosure Scotland of the allegations.

Cullen admitted he had left youth football before the court case.

He was sentenced on October 30.

A spokesman for the SYFA said: “Having spoken to the current and former league secretaries, they have confirmed that no concerns were raised with them about Cullen’s behaviour or actions relating to his former position at the league.

“While we are aware none of these charges relate to Cullen’s involvement with the SYFA’s member league, we utterly condemn his despicable actions and wish to underline child wellbeing and protection will continue to be our priority.”

A spokesman for NSPCC Scotland said: “He chose to download images and videos of children being abused, fuelling the demand for this deplorable industry that thrives on suffering.”