Racing Santander players stage on-pitch boycott over unpaid wages January 30, 2014 -- Updated 2311 GMT (0711 HKT) Racing Santander's players stand on the field refusing to play in a protest over unpaid wages. Racing Santander players stage boycott of Copa del Rey quarterfinal Angry about unpaid wages at cash-strapped club Real Sociedad led 3-1 after first leg on their home ground Racing team links arms in center circle just after kick off (CNN) -- A Copa del Rey last four clash against Barcelona awaited Racing Santander's players if they could pull back a two-goal deficit against Real Sociedad in a quarterfinal second leg but instead the team stood arm and arm in the center circle and refused to play Thursday. Angered by months of unpaid wages and with their demand for club president Angel Lavin and his board to step down ignored, the squad carried through on its threat to boycott the match. They had warmed up prior to kick off but once proceedings were underway it became immediately clear that it would not be a contest. Sociedad, who led 3-1 from the first leg, passed the ball among themselves while the Racing team grouped together in their protest. Substitutes and staff -- including coach Francisco Fernandez Gomez -- who has reportedly not been paid for sixth months -- performed the same gesture on the touchline. Read: Messi going nowhere say Barca Home fans in the El Sardinero stadium also applauded their team, who had enjoyed a fairytale run to the last eight of the cup, beating top flight sides Sevilla and Almeria. Once the ball had been kicked out for a throw-in, the referee Gil Manzano signaled the match had been abandoned with the Sociedad likely to be awarded a passage to the semifinals and a plum tie against the Catalan giants. The unusual events had been in the making since the start of the week when Racing captain Mario Fernandez confirmed the team had not been paid for several months and related tales of hardship as a consequence. Read: Rosell resigns over Neymar affair As Thursday evening's kick off loomed, the Association of Spanish Footballers (AFE) chief Luis Rubiales met with the Racing players and told gathered reporters what they had decided. If at 2100 (local time) the Racing board is the same as now, they will not play. The squad decided something last Monday which they made public, and they continue thinking exactly the same, that if the current board has not resigned by the time of the game they are not going to play. "They have the complete backing of the AFE, as always," he added. Racing has spent most of its 101-year history in the Spanish La Liga top flight and finished sixth as recently as 2008, but plagued by debt has suffered two straight relegations as well as entering administration.