The Football League Thread

I don't really care about Pompey. But the whole making a derby out of the Plymouth game was weird. The Dockyard Derby sounds such a **** name. What will they think of next?

 

So, my first game working for Southend United ended in a 1-0 win - that'll do.

My report, here - if you'd be so kind/lacking in other things to do: http://www.southendunited.co.uk/news/article/151114-match-report-hartlepool-2085489.aspx

 

I think it's a very old one. They had a 95-yr-old Pompey fan talking about it on Sky.

 

Sorry, DTLW. I got to halfway down the page and then thought, why am I reading this..?

It's upto your usual standard however. Well put together. I'll have to trust you on the spellings of the players' names. Well done.

 

Haha, I'll take that! Thanks, TSS.

 

I don't need it, but I do like it.

 

Slightly surprised that the Irish PFA have just published this on Ched Evans...

http://www.pfai.ie/news/hanging-ched-–-double-jeopardy-court-public-opinion

 

Well written and persuasively argued. I drew two conclusions from it. That the law courts and general public has a high minded idea of rape over practically any other form of harm, be it fatal or otherwise, and/or Hughes and McCormick can count themselves lucky that they managed to sneak back into football, largely under the radar.

I'll not go into my complicated personal feelings on the specific matter, otherwise I could potentially be here all night, but I can't see how the bloke can return to professional football in the light of his particular crime and his apparent inability to see that it should be necessary for him to apologise, whether he admits to being guilty or not. One can still be extremely remorseful for the damage one has done to a victim, yet still feel one is innocent. There are very fine lines here, and the bottom line is... in a person's conscience, given the circumstances, when they do this act, do they believe what they are doing is fine..? There has to be a personal moral compass and responsibility here that errs on the side of caution. For the other person's sake [in this case, the girl] and for the sake of oneself.

 

he's probably acutely aware that it is necessary for him not to apologise. he may or may not feel remorse privately.

 

Why would it be necessary for him not to apologise? As TSS, says, that is the minimum he has to do. Even if he were innocent of rape (which despite the Irish article, the law in England is clear he wasn't), he has served his sentence and is never going to get that time back. If he wants to rebuild his life and move on, he has to take responsibility for what happened.

 

He's either innocent or in complete denial. Either way he's not going to say sorry as that would, in his mind, admit he raped her and he's not prepared to do that.

 

Since no one is arguing that the girl raped him and his friend, he has to at least accept partial responsibility for what happened.

 

Good article which does ask a lot of questions I've been asking myself. Didn't pay much attention to the trial so that may have provided some of the answers although I can't find them on the internet (only had a quick look). As others have said he can't apologise if he truly believes he is innocent as that would be admitting guilt which he can't do when he is trying to appeal. As a female I am surprisingly seeing both sides. This does not mean I think he's innocent. Usually I would have a rapist castrated by now!

 

Evans could always call off his attack dogs...he has never attempted to rein in his friends and families who have pursued the victim so that she has had to change her identity twice. I would have more pity for him if he just said something along the lines of that he believed she gave consent, now he realises that she may not have been capable of doing that, and he is sorry if that was the case. Doesn't affect his innocent plea and may have gained him some mitigation in the original court case. You can often judge a man by his friends...he is a nasty piece of work and is unable to admit he may have made an error of judgement...he would rather call the victim nasty names (forgetting that he also took part in a sordid incident, so many could call him a slut).

Whatever happened, he is not an innocent in this. I am just glad he doesn't play for us and we have our name dragged through the mud. Sheffield United are now seen as a nasty little team with no moral compass...they should have waited until after the appeal. Now, whatever they do, it looks like they are only responding to force majeure. I would be very unhappy as a United fan.

 

I agree all the mud slinging is wrong and is a downside of this communication era we live in where any idiot can stir up trouble. If he can stop them he definitely should. He's probably been advised by his lawyers to keep quiet with regards to apologies.

 

Wigan Athletic to name Malky Mackay as the club's new manager this afternoon.

 

Well that wasn't too obvious.

 

Not suggesting that Mackay shouldn't get a job, but what a ghastly man. Didn't know much about it but looked up his infamous e-mails when someone on Sky mentioned he was a man who had insulted virtually everybody...it was true, he insulted black people, Jews, women and Orientals in just the few e-mails that I read. He is also vulgar in the Andy Grey mode. I hope for Wigan's sake that he keeps his views to himself and pretends to be a decent human being.

 

Surprises me that Wigan are taking him on if he's that bad I always thought they were a club with decent values. Martinez and Whelan always seemed that way.

 

He's under an FA investigation following a dossier sent from Cardiff. It was this dossier that prevented him getting the Crystal Palace job.