Football

[ReverendFozz]

Has anybody heard about who the latest club to want to sign Ched Evans is...

Ashbrooke Belford House in the Wearside League

Rapist footballer Ched Evans could be back on the pitch – with a non-league side who play in front of 100 fans

Ashbrooke Belford House FC manager and garage boss Asa Dobbing said the Wales international deserved a second chance and could get it at the Wearside club.

Rapist footballer Ched Evans has been offered a route back into the game – with a side seven leagues below professional level.

The hope of a return to the game was dangled in front of the former Wales international striker by Ashbrooke Belford House FC – who play in front of 100 fans at Silksworth Welfare Park in the Wearside Football League.

The Sunderland-based side’s boss said it was time the ex-Sheffield United hitman was given a second chance.

“It’s a good standard and the grounds have stands and seating areas,” manager Asa Dobbing told Wales Online.

“The players get paid wages. We have had an injury crisis and we are getting to a cup final.”

The team is desperate to get its hands on the Shipowners Charity Cup.

Rapist footballer Ched Evans claims he has 'fresh evidence' which will help get his conviction overturned

Convicted: Ched Evans with his girlfriend Natasha Massey. He says he is "determined to continue the fight" to clear his name

“We’ve been looking out for a centre forward and my assistant manager has come up with the idea because Ched is not doing anything,” said Asa.

“We could invite him to play for us and get himself match fit so he is ready to go. Whether or not the lad will take up the opportunity I don’t know.”

If garage boss Asa was in his position he would take up the offer.

“It’s his chance to get his legs going,” the 35-year-old said.

“He can train as much as he wants but if you’re not getting game time you’ll be a bit rusty.”

He insisted he did not want to get involved in Evans’*court case.

“I have got my own personal views,” he said.

“He has done his time whether people think he is innocent or guilty.”

The former Manchester City attacker was sentenced to five years in jail in 2012 after he was found guilty of raping a 19-year-old at a Premier Inn near Rhyl, in Denbighshire.

Ched Evans' victim may have to give evidence again as appeal is investigated

He was released last year after serving half his time and has since seen a proposed return to professional football collapse.

Former club Sheffield United initially*let Evans train with them*after his release but later*withdrew the offer*following a*huge public outcry*while a planned contract at Oldham Athletic fell through.

“People deserve a second chance in life,” Asa said. “That is what we built the empire on.”

He said he was “quite happy” to take Evans into his squad and added: “He would bring a hell of a lot of goals and a lot of experience.”

Evans, 26,*apologised to his victim*last month after his deal to join League One Oldham fell apart when staff got death threats.

“We’d like to set up a meeting,” Asa said. “It would be easier for me if he could come here.”

 

[Drogba11CFC]

I have seen calls on social media for UEFA to take action against Chelsea. I don't want to make light of the incident but since when did UEFA takeover the Paris Metro?

You mean that ridiculous petition with 60 signatures? (And quite a few homophobic comments. Irony meter is off the scale.)

 

[DarloRich]

Odious as these people are and having a level of disregard for Chelsea scu, sorry supporters:

I disagree, a football club is responsible for the behaviour of its fans even away from their own ground.

Fenerbahce were fined when their fans smashed up the Emirates Stadium earlier on this season, even though they weren't in control of security in London, and rightly so.

The extension of your argument is that Molson/Coors or Heineken should be held responsible for every town centre punch up on a Saturday night! What other businesses do you hold responsible for the actions of their customers away from their premises?

Football clubs are responsible for anyone on their premises or under their control. They are not responsible for people freely travelling around the world! It is a criminal action that should be dealt with by the police with the required level of support from the club.

Interesting how, so far, we've got a UKIP-supporting public schoolboy and a former RUC officer caught up and both of them were "on their own" and "unaware of what was going on". Yeah right.

Prove it though! The pictures that have been released can’t identify anyone beyond reasonable doubt. It would be hard, imo, to even issue a banning order based on the video

…. Yes I was in the underground station at the time but I was alone/with a separate group/ not associated with these thugs etc....

 

[Tetchytyke]

To be fair those were known to be larger groups. In this case, we don't know how many were involved. They could have been 10 lads travelling to the game together, or they could have been the 200-strong Italian 'ultra-style' arm of the Chelsea hardcore support. No way to tell

I don't actually think that matters. Rangers have previously been banned from away grounds because of the chanting at away matches, despite the fact it's usually only a small minority of people doing the chanting. Parts of Parkhead have been closed for the same reason.

I don't think you can fine some clubs for behaviour away from their home stadium and not fine other clubs.

 

[Antman]

Astonishingly the FA are taking no action against Ashley Barnes..............words fail me!!

Barnes served a seven game ban earlier in his career for tripping up a referee, obviously nearly ending a players career is far less serious.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

There seems to be a lack of understanding by certain forum members that incidents that occur within the confines of a stadium where a match is being played are somewhat removed from other incidents that occur well away from the match area. Strictures of the football authorities are there to deal with matters of stadium and playing problems...not in unrelated areas well away from the stadium. The football authorities laws of the game remit do not cover those unrelated matters which occur a good distance away which are deemed to be public order offences, etc., as Counsel would be only too happy to point out in any such court case.

The laws of the land are more sacrosanct than the laws of the football authorities.

 

[richw]

Astonishingly the FA are taking no action against Ashley Barnes..............words fail me!!

Barnes served a seven game ban earlier in his career for tripping up a referee, obviously nearly ending a players career is far less serious.

refer to post 15131 on why the FA cant punish him. The FA rules are the issue here

 

[Antman]

refer to post 15131 on why the FA cant punish him. The FA rules are the issue here

And clearly the FA rules need a complete overhaul.

Apparently Chelsea are going to appeal Matic's red card.

 

[richw]

And clearly the FA rules need a complete overhaul.

Apparently Chelsea are going to appeal Matic's red card.

Without doubt. The FA say it undermines the referee.

Rugby referees speak very highly of being able to use technology, and also having the ability to retrospectively punish players when the referee has seen footage from a different angle to their own view.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

And clearly the FA rules need a complete overhaul.

The laws of the game are the rules that so apply in this very moment of time. Have you heard anything that would suggest that changes to these are to take place?

Personal opinions count for naught in this particular matter.

 

[DarloRich]

football has laws not rules

 

[Antman]

Without doubt. The FA say it undermines the referee.

Rugby referees speak very highly of being able to use technology, and also having the ability to retrospectively punish players when the referee has seen footage from a different angle to their own view.

Football is so far behind rugby on the use of technology it's unreal
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The rules of the game are the rules that so apply in this very moment of time. Have you heard anything that would suggest that changes to these are to take place?

Personal opinions count for naught in this particular matter.

But if Martin Atkinson had said that at the time from his angle it didn't look like a foul but having watched TV replays he can now see it was serious foul play by Barnes....................

 

[RichmondCommu]

We'll have to beg to differ then, the incident has nothing to do with Chelsea football club although they have quite rightly condemned it.

I'm sorry but you are wrong. If you are a victim of racial hatred, along with the feelings of anguish and humiliation that go hand in hand the last thing on your mind is compensation. Its perfectly clear that the victim had made up his mind to not even tell his family what had happened until the video appeared in the media the following day. That doesn't sound like someone who had planned to cash in on what had happened to him.

From what I've viewed on social media it does appear that a few Chelsea fans have suggested that the media should quickly move on from what happened last Tuesday which I find disappointing. I've also noticed Chelsea supporters mocking the victim for having the nerve to have said that he felt humiliated having been thrown off the train twice by the Chelsea racist thugs. Whilst I accept that these thugs don't represent the majority of the Chelsea faithful it nevertheless suggests that the club needs to do more work in reinforcing the fact that this behavior is not acceptable.

Finally, a good friend of mine is a Chelsea fan who has had a season ticket for over twenty four years and who also happens to be of Asian descent. Last season whilst travelling to an away game by train other Chelsea fans in the same carriage started singing "I'd rather be a Paki than a Turk". There were a least a dozen fans singing this song. Chelsea club officials need to start patrolling trains that their fans travel on to away games.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

I'd agree that "Souleymane S" seems to be out for a penny or two- I don't blame him, really, I'd cross my fingers and go watch Chelsea too if they were putting me in an executive box- but I think Chelsea need to clamp down on the people responsible. Interesting how, so far, we've got a UKIP-supporting public schoolboy and a former RUC officer caught up and both of them were "on their own" and "unaware of what was going on". Yeah right.

I'm sorry but you do not appear to understand the feelings of absolute misery that result from racial abuse. Trust me compensation will be the last thing on the victims mind. And why on earth would you want to accept an invitation from a club whose supporters had racially abused you? I certainly wouldn't and neither it appears will the victim.

 

[DarloRich]

Chelsea club officials need to start patrolling trains that their fans travel on to away games.

and do what? On what legal basis can they intervene in anything? What powers do they have to do anything?

I think you are misguided on this point - that isn't to say the actions of these people are not utterly abhorrent, plainly they are, but it is a job for the police to deal with criminals.

As i said previously, which other business should offer standing patrols in order to check on the behavior of their customers away from their place of business?

 

[RichmondCommu]

and do what? On what legal basis can they intervene in anything? What powers do they have to do anything?

I think you are misguided on this point - that isn't to say the actions of these people are not utterly abhorrent, plainly they are, but it is a job for the police to deal with criminals.

As i said previously, which other business should offer standing patrols in order to check on the behavior of their customers away from their place of business?

In comparison to the 1970's and 1980's, Chelsea and other clubs including my beloved Derby County have worked hard to rebuild their reputations. However there is no question that even before last week racist behavior is not uncommon within groups of travelling fans. If clubs such as Chelsea wish to protect their brand (yes that's what football has become) they need to start collecting evidence from their supporters.

Those stewards don't need any special powers, they just need to start observing and recording what they see. Up until last week I think football supporters and the media had assumed that this kind of thing only happened in central and eastern Europe. Well they were wrong.

 

[Antman]

In comparison to the 1970's and 1980's, Chelsea and other clubs including my beloved Derby County have worked hard to rebuild their reputations. However there is no question that even before last week racist behavior is not uncommon within groups of travelling fans. If clubs such as Chelsea wish to protect their brand (yes that's what football has become) they need to start collecting evidence from their supporters.

Those stewards don't need any special powers, they just need to start observing and recording what they see. Up until last week I think football supporters and the media had assumed that this kind of thing only happened in central and eastern Europe. Well they were wrong.

Well they're not entirely wrong, such behaviour is commonplace in Eastern Europe but rare in this country.

I'm not sure about this idea of stewards, most people have phones that can record evidence which can be passed onto the police if appropriate.

 

[jon0844]

Couldn't stewards wear body cams to capture things? They don't need to be asked to film things when they have other duties to perform, but tapping to mark something of interest for someone else to review could be useful.

Body cams are, perhaps sadly, going to become quite common in the not too distant future.

 

[Tetchytyke]

I'm sorry but you do not appear to understand the feelings of absolute misery that result from racial abuse. Trust me compensation will be the last thing on the victims mind.

Perhaps he's been misrepresented in the press, but the fact that he's instructed lawyers to "talk" with Chelsea makes me think the Euro sign's lit up in his eyes.

The extension of your argument is that Molson/Coors or Heineken should be held responsible for every town centre punch up on a Saturday night! What other businesses do you hold responsible for the actions of their customers away from their premises?

Football clubs are responsible for anyone on their premises or under their control. They are not responsible for people freely travelling around the world! It is a criminal action that should be dealt with by the police with the required level of support from the club.

You've just inadvertently proved my point.

Most licensed premises in city centres have to pay towards the cost of policing as a condition of their licence. They are also responsible for the behaviour of their customers after leaving the premises, and repeated bad behaviour can see them lose their licence.

Similarly football clubs are responsible for paying for policing far away from their ground. There have been instances where football clubs have been fined for their fans' behaviour away from a football ground- Rangers in Manchester being the best example- as opposed to what happened in their own ground.

Rugby referees speak very highly of being able to use technology, and also having the ability to retrospectively punish players when the referee has seen footage from a different angle to their own view.

I think rugby league's ability to put a player on report when the referee isn't certain what they've just seen is a very good thing. It'd be useful to have it in football. It doesn't undermine the referee yet appreciates they might have missed something- it's often hard to tell who started a brawl, for instance.

As for Matic's red card, it was entirely correct regardless of the provocation (though Matic is a dirty wee cheat too, so I think he's protesting too loudly).

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Another round of games, and more surprises in the Championship, sorry, Second Division...

Leeds, having looked like they'd turned the corner, go down 2-0 at an improving Brighton... Sheffield Wednesday end their poor run and manage to score not once but twice... And finally, our boys finally produce a performance that's demonstrative of the talent we have in the side. Reading were poor but better than they were in the cup game which they won. Our third goal was a really well worked team goal, possibly goal of the season, for us at least.

Blackpool are looking doomed, Wigan not far behind them. Millwall or Rotherham are my tips for the final relegation place. Haven't a clue who'll go up!

 

[Morden Via CHX]

Another round of games, and more surprises in the Championship, sorry, Second Division...

Leeds, having looked like they'd turned the corner, go down 2-0 at an improving Brighton... Sheffield Wednesday end their poor run and manage to score not once but twice... And finally, our boys finally produce a performance that's demonstrative of the talent we have in the side. Reading were poor but better than they were in the cup game which they won. Our third goal was a really well worked team goal, possibly goal of the season, for us at least.

Blackpool are looking doomed, Wigan not far behind them. Millwall or Rotherham are my tips for the final relegation place. Haven't a clue who'll go up!

I think it will probably be Millwall. Holloway has totally lost the plot there. He probably won't get another manager's job in the top two divisions.

 

[Tetchytyke]

I think it'll be Millwall too, but I really really really want it to be Rotherham because of their manager.

We were totally outplayed last night at Swindon, but luckily nobody else near us (except Sheffield United, who were behind us a fortnight ago and are now five points clear) in the playoff race seems to be any better. It's frustrating how many times we've let leads slip this year. I think the cup run is going to distract us from a playoff push, just like it almost did in 2012, but then I'm not certain I'd want us to go up this season. We'd come straight back down with a record low points score.

Speaking of poor football, I think Barcelona might rue that missed penalty. Manchester City surely can't be as bad in the second leg?

 

[Antman]

I think it'll be Millwall too, but I really really really want it to be Rotherham because of their manager.

We were totally outplayed last night at Swindon, but luckily nobody else near us (except Sheffield United, who were behind us a fortnight ago and are now five points clear) in the playoff race seems to be any better. It's frustrating how many times we've let leads slip this year. I think the cup run is going to distract us from a playoff push, just like it almost did in 2012, but then I'm not certain I'd want us to go up this season. We'd come straight back down with a record low points score.

Speaking of poor football, I think Barcelona might rue that missed penalty. Manchester City surely can't be as bad in the second leg?

What, the charming Steve Evans? A friend of mine met him once and found him suprisingly polite and pleasant, he must have been having an off day

Barca should still go through but it seems Messi's record from the penalty spot isn't that great, perhaps somebody else should have taken it?

 

[Tetchytyke]

What, the charming Steve Evans? A friend of mine met him once and found him suprisingly polite and pleasant, he must have been having an off day

Aye, just a shame our stewards met him and saw far more of his charm than anyone would want to see

 

[familyguy99]

Lee Johnson have left Oldham Athletic and become new Barnsley head coach, Holden and Lockwood is our temporary manager until new one come in.

Lee Johnson: Barnsley appoint Oldham manager

Barnsley have appointed Oldham manager Lee Johnson as their new head coach on a three-and-a-half-year contract.

The clubs have agreed an undisclosed compensation deal for the 33-year-old and his assistant Tommy Wright.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/31621401

I have to say I'm disappointed that Johnson have left Oldham for Barnsley as we are doing well this season and still could go up to Championship via Play offs, saying that Johnson will do well at Barnsley and I think Barnsley will end up near to top 2 or play offs next season when Johnson can bring his own players in.

Saturday 14th March is going to be interesting now as that when Oldham meet Barnsley at Boundary Park, I just hope Oldham can get three points against Barnsley and show Johnson why he should stay at Oldham.

 

[Antman]

And Arsenal thought they had got the easy draw

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

And Arsenal thought they had got the easy draw

I am sure that Arsenal will take far less satisfaction from the game from their injury-time goal than their opponents who take "three away goals" into the return leg.

 

[Tetchytyke]

And Arsenal thought they had got the easy draw

They had.

And they still managed to chuck it away. That third goal was the one that got me- get it back to 2-1 and play out time. Now they're going to need to win by three clear goals in Monaco.

Idiots.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Nottingham Forest 2...Bournemouth 1

After seeing his side take a very early third minute lead, Eddie Howe will be looking at back-to-back Championship defeats that now see Bournemouth in fourth place with a very large amount of frustration.

 

[hairyhandedfool]

And Arsenal thought they had got the easy draw

Fans and the media will have you believe that, but.....

"Easy is a word you have to ban in the Champions League. It is hard-earned every time. There's always one goal between going out and staying in.
"In the last four years we've gone out in the last 16, twice against the winner, on goal difference or on one goal"

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Falkirk 1...Rangers 1

After two easy passages in the lower divisions, Rangers are finding that the Scottish Championship is posing a much harder task and still find themselves in third-place. Games in hand are all very well, but you must obtain more than one point in such matches if you wish to pressurise the teams above you.