That is an interesting point. I thought it was the other way round. For someone to say he belived someone had taken a bribe (for this or that reason), he had to have some evidence.
I wasn't the one saying he was dodgy I pointed out a story that came out earlier this year from Graham Poll actually. It's relevant to this discussion which is about the 'relationship' between Halsey and fergie.
Merely labelling something as an 'opinion' doesn't automatically preclude you from a defamation claim. A statement is defamatory if its publication has caused or is likely to cause serious harm to the reputation of the claimant. So some donk using hyperbole to express an ill judged opinion on here is unlikely to result in a successful claim, but a blog of a similar nature on say the BBC site, might have a totally different outcome & merely prefixing it as 'opinion' wouldn't matter.
The bit where he says there were no favours, erm... He called saf and asked him to speak out over the obi Mikel situation. No favours my ferkin arse mate.
It is that way round which is why it's very difficult to sue someone over an opinion. The person calling you a cheat or whatever can't provide facts and that's why it's an opinion which in turn is why it can't be defamation.
I'm no legal expert so I'm just expressing an opinion here. Common sense would suggest that if someone accused another of illegal or unprofessional behaviour, and expected something to be done about it (prosecution or official censure, perhaps), then they would have to provide evidence to support the claim. However, if everyone gobbing off on an internet forum could be sued for defamation there'd be no time in the courts for any other business. It'd probably make a few solicitors happy bunnies though.
Halsey might well have been a 'respected' ref at Woodison, where officials are known to give incorrect offside decisions 5 seconds after a goal has been scored so that they can get away from the Gladwys St alive, but most of that was due to sentimentality re the cancer and his first game back. And whilst it is heart-warming to see ANYONE beat cancer, it shouldn't mask he was a ****ing awful ref, in awe of Ferguson like most of the Prem refs. And given the performance of another one on Saturday at OT, things haven't changed.
[video=youtube;1ZXdbtOJJ3g]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZXdbtOJJ3g[/video] Keep churning out the conspiracy theories though lads. Maybe if you try hard enough you can find enough games he's chucked in their direction to account for a fist full of league titles Dem Mancs
Am I missing something here? What does a film of Mick McCarthy have to do with Halsey sending SECRET texts (against all FA guidelines) to a manager? Halsey's in that shot for 2 seconds. He could be pulling a face at anything! Probably pissed that he isn't the ref getting the backhander (there's libel for you Smithy).
It shows quite clearly that he was hardly a Manc sympathiser eh? Him swapping texts with Ferguson was unprofessional, but all Gerrard had to do was whisper in Clittenburgs ear & "our Mark" would change a major decision.....
Quite ****ing right too! Hibbert should have been sent off as he was the last man and Gerrard was through. Give you that Gerrard stayed on his feet long enough to make it look like it was in the box (it wasn't) but Clattenburg should never have had to have been told to send off Hibbert, just as Twatkinson should never have had to have been told to send off Pienaar after his horror tackle on Mascherano.
No one accused him of loving Man Utd, just the money he received for making certain decisions in certain football games, as was his wont. Keep churning...
Don't start me on that 'performance' by him. Remember Carragher's full nelson on Lescott? ffs that was the most bent piece of refereeing I've ever had the misfortune of watching *& if you're reading this Mark - sue me you beaut .
It's a fact, daft lad Clattenburg went for a yellow card until Stevie DJ had a word in his shell & he then went to his back pocket.......he never refereed an Everton game for 5 years after that match.
I don't remember anything contentious in that game at all, aside from maybe Reina having a wedge on an AJ hatrick
You've missed out the most important caveat - the statement has to be UNTRUE. If I tell the truth about you and in so doing demean your reputation then no libel has occurred.
Mark Halsey - 29 games refereeing league matches involving Manchester United between 2001 and 2013 - over that run of games, United lost once in 2004 away to Southampton. by comparison he's officiated at 21 Arsenal matches over the same period. Arsene isn't in SAF's class, so Arsenal have been overturned 3 times...
