This isn't a thread to go back over the incident(s) at all as they have been done to death.
Adam Johnson has been released after serving 3 years of his 6 year sentence.
Thought I'd start one relating to whether we think he should be allowed to play football at the highest level again given what's gone before?
My view on the question, rather than reflecting on the incident as per the OP;
Football teams are potrayed as community clubs, the professional image of the club is to bring smiles to the faces of poorly kids in hospital. To help the less well off kids in our society and to visit those in hospices. Along with giving kids the chance to be a match day mascot or a ball boy/girl and encouraging and practising with the young talented kids of the future to achieve their dreams, or just a kick about for fun. So who the hell wants a previously convicted nonce at their club!
In any other job where you work with vulnerable people, you would be required to go through enhanced criminal checks, who would want to employ someone to work with vulnerable children when they have the word nonce on their record.
People see this nonce's job as merely a footballer, it is far more than that, they probably spend as much time in the community around kids, as they do on the pitch during match day.
Therefore his time may have been served, but his record is severly blemished and he shouldn't be allowed in an employment that works with young children ever again. The NHS wouldn't accept him and care care homes wouldn't accept him either, and football due to the nature of the community work shouldn't accept him, otherwise it makes a mockery of the wording community club, where kids can have fun and play safely, without some nonce leering over them.
As Brian Storm rightly said about, it's called safeguarding.
