Cardiff,Fulham,Norwich look for scapegoats for their failing
Sun May 04, 2014 11:06 pm
Ive just read this article,very interesting, even if it succeeded Sunderland at most would loose a single point.
Come on Cardiff, we were already an embarrassment in the Premier League thanks to Tans Circus, please no more.
We were relegated fairly because we were crap on the field of play end off.
Now lets start a fresh next season.
' Cardiff,Fulham,Norwich look for scapegoats for their failings '
Sunderland are being ganged up on... but relegation is all about dud bosses and lousy players, not a clerical error
By MARTIN SAMUEL - SPORT
Daily Mail
That whining, mewling, carping noise in the distance? Here it comes again, another campaign for fairness for football.
The most predictable outcome of a weekend when Premier League relegation issues were all but decided, is that there should be an alliance of the damned to gang up on Sunderland.
Cardiff City, Fulham and Norwich City lacked the wit to resolve their own problems — having created them, in the most part — so are now looking for scapegoats. Sunderland fielded an ineligible player, Ji Dong-won, in three league games earlier in the season and got away with a fine. So that’ll do.
The Premier League looked at the Ji case, and decided a financial penalty was the appropriate punishment. Their mistake was in not publicising that decision. In other leagues, Sunderland would undoubtedly have been docked points, but that is irrelevant.
Other leagues can be stupid and reckless towards their members. Some of their punishments can be disproportionate and excessively harmful. The Premier League, by contrast, inspect each disciplinary case on merit, eschewing a hard and fast outcome. And the clubs prefer it that way.
A reasonable and finite statutory punishment would be that all three points were awarded to the opposition in every match Ji played. He wasn’t exactly Lionel Messi, mind you.
Sunderland would lose a single point for the 1-1 draw with Southampton, in which Ji came on for the second half, during which time Sunderland lost a 1-0 lead. No matter. If those were the rules, set in stone before the season began, there could be no complaint.
Would it make much difference? Hardly. Cardiff would still be relegated as of Saturday and Fulham only clinging to Premier League life on the mathematical possibility of winning their final game as Sunderland lost twice, while somehow engineering a 26-goal turnaround.
This campaign for fairness, therefore, is likely to settle on Norwich, who sacked their manager, Chris Hughton, in April in the hope of receiving what is known on Wall Street as a dead cat bounce. This is a term for a small, but brief, recovery in the price of a declining stock — based on the principle that even a dead cat will bounce if dropped from a great height.
Unfortunately, Norwich’s dead cat has not so much bounced as plunged from the tall building straight through an open manhole cover into a fast-flowing sewer. The new manager, Neil Adams, collected his first point too late on Sunday with a plucky display at Chelsea. It will be rendered an irrelevance if Sunderland collect one point from their last two games, however.
The reason the relegated clubs deserve no shred of sympathy is the Premier League’s laissez-faire disciplinary policy was fine for them, until they were affected. There is no record of any of these clubs speaking up for punitive controls, until this became the way to save their sorry hides.
+10
Doomed: Fulham fans look on as their side spiral into the Championship after 12 years in the top flight
In the United States, the leagues run the clubs. Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, they impose rules and make the clubs take their medicine, no matter how foul.
Here, the clubs run the league and abide by rules they draw up. And nobody wanted finite, draconian points deductions for registration infringements prior to this event, in case they were the ones that transgressed.
It is wondered why the Premier League do not have a proper, defined process. But they do, and a fine is the likely outcome.
That was the result in the Carlos Tevez swindle involving West Ham, which contained a deliberate intent to deceive. Sunderland just messed up.
Even those advocating harsh measures concede this was a genuine mistake, not a nefarious scam.
Either way, there is a Premier League precedent — rightly or wrongly — and it is not points deduction. If Sunderland were a Football League club it would be different, as AFC Wimbledon discovered last month; but they are not.
+10
Down: Cardiff were relegated under Solskjaer after Malky Mackay was sacked earlier in the season
The Tevez debacle was the time for the Premier League clubs to insist on fierce, watertight legislation, but they didn’t do that. Too complex; too much risk of one day requiring a light administrative touch.
Afair precedent could have been set that a victory was awarded to the opposition for every game Tevez played up to the time of the independent hearing on April 27, 2007. So how would that have panned out?
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Jose Mourinho confused by Norwich negativity as Chelsea settle for third place
West Ham would have lost 14 points of their 32 and gone down in an instant. Job done. Yet think on because the ripples would not stop there.
Aston Villa would have gained two points and moved above Blackburn in 10th, Fulham would have gained two points to move three points clear of Wigan, who would also have been leapfrogged by Sheffield United’s addition of three. Wigan would then have fallen to 17th place and been the prime candidates to be caught by Charlton and relegated.
No doubt Dave Whelan would have had something to say about that.
Middlesbrough would have jumped Newcastle United and Manchester City into guaranteed safety, Arsenal would have moved to within a point of Liverpool in third place and Everton would have gone three clear of Bolton in fifth. And a fresh set of self-interested clubs would have been joining a campaign for fairness.
In the end, West Ham were fined and Sheffield United sued and sued until they found a judge barmy enough to rule that a club is not responsible for its own league position, and were awarded giant compensation. They put this to good use by getting relegated further.
And that is what the latest gang of three are looking for; a rogue ruling, a free pass for their own inadequacies. Cardiff have already tried it on once with a ludicrous protest that Crystal Palace discovered their team in advance of a 3-0 win.
Illegal: Sheffield United took West Ham to court over the signing of Carlos Tevez (left) in 2006
Now this. Yet the doomed haven’t dropped because Sunderland played Ji Dong-won. They fell because they made bad decisions, bought lousy players, appointed dud managers and displayed all the characteristics of clubs that did not merit a place in the Premier League.
If 16 unaffected associates joined their cause, they might have a case, but they won’t and they haven’t — for the same reason that no club joined Sheffield United’s bandwagon in 2007. The owners desire this regulatory Wild West.
They want to be immune from the botched form, the incompetent employee, the rogue registration, the malfunctioning fax machine, just the same.
The irony being that there is a league where a version of fairness reigns and an infringement such as the one Sunderland committed is punished, hard and fast, by the deduction of points. The relegated clubs will play in it next season. And you can see how delighted they are.
Come on Cardiff, we were already an embarrassment in the Premier League thanks to Tans Circus, please no more.
We were relegated fairly because we were crap on the field of play end off.
Now lets start a fresh next season.
' Cardiff,Fulham,Norwich look for scapegoats for their failings '
Sunderland are being ganged up on... but relegation is all about dud bosses and lousy players, not a clerical error
By MARTIN SAMUEL - SPORT
Daily Mail
That whining, mewling, carping noise in the distance? Here it comes again, another campaign for fairness for football.
The most predictable outcome of a weekend when Premier League relegation issues were all but decided, is that there should be an alliance of the damned to gang up on Sunderland.
Cardiff City, Fulham and Norwich City lacked the wit to resolve their own problems — having created them, in the most part — so are now looking for scapegoats. Sunderland fielded an ineligible player, Ji Dong-won, in three league games earlier in the season and got away with a fine. So that’ll do.
The Premier League looked at the Ji case, and decided a financial penalty was the appropriate punishment. Their mistake was in not publicising that decision. In other leagues, Sunderland would undoubtedly have been docked points, but that is irrelevant.
Other leagues can be stupid and reckless towards their members. Some of their punishments can be disproportionate and excessively harmful. The Premier League, by contrast, inspect each disciplinary case on merit, eschewing a hard and fast outcome. And the clubs prefer it that way.
A reasonable and finite statutory punishment would be that all three points were awarded to the opposition in every match Ji played. He wasn’t exactly Lionel Messi, mind you.
Sunderland would lose a single point for the 1-1 draw with Southampton, in which Ji came on for the second half, during which time Sunderland lost a 1-0 lead. No matter. If those were the rules, set in stone before the season began, there could be no complaint.
Would it make much difference? Hardly. Cardiff would still be relegated as of Saturday and Fulham only clinging to Premier League life on the mathematical possibility of winning their final game as Sunderland lost twice, while somehow engineering a 26-goal turnaround.
This campaign for fairness, therefore, is likely to settle on Norwich, who sacked their manager, Chris Hughton, in April in the hope of receiving what is known on Wall Street as a dead cat bounce. This is a term for a small, but brief, recovery in the price of a declining stock — based on the principle that even a dead cat will bounce if dropped from a great height.
Unfortunately, Norwich’s dead cat has not so much bounced as plunged from the tall building straight through an open manhole cover into a fast-flowing sewer. The new manager, Neil Adams, collected his first point too late on Sunday with a plucky display at Chelsea. It will be rendered an irrelevance if Sunderland collect one point from their last two games, however.
The reason the relegated clubs deserve no shred of sympathy is the Premier League’s laissez-faire disciplinary policy was fine for them, until they were affected. There is no record of any of these clubs speaking up for punitive controls, until this became the way to save their sorry hides.
+10
Doomed: Fulham fans look on as their side spiral into the Championship after 12 years in the top flight
In the United States, the leagues run the clubs. Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, they impose rules and make the clubs take their medicine, no matter how foul.
Here, the clubs run the league and abide by rules they draw up. And nobody wanted finite, draconian points deductions for registration infringements prior to this event, in case they were the ones that transgressed.
It is wondered why the Premier League do not have a proper, defined process. But they do, and a fine is the likely outcome.
That was the result in the Carlos Tevez swindle involving West Ham, which contained a deliberate intent to deceive. Sunderland just messed up.
Even those advocating harsh measures concede this was a genuine mistake, not a nefarious scam.
Either way, there is a Premier League precedent — rightly or wrongly — and it is not points deduction. If Sunderland were a Football League club it would be different, as AFC Wimbledon discovered last month; but they are not.
+10
Down: Cardiff were relegated under Solskjaer after Malky Mackay was sacked earlier in the season
The Tevez debacle was the time for the Premier League clubs to insist on fierce, watertight legislation, but they didn’t do that. Too complex; too much risk of one day requiring a light administrative touch.
Afair precedent could have been set that a victory was awarded to the opposition for every game Tevez played up to the time of the independent hearing on April 27, 2007. So how would that have panned out?
More...
Pape Diop the victim of alleged racist abuse from Atletico Madrid fans after Levante dent La Liga leaders' title bid
Ashley Cole breaks down in tears during Chelsea's parade lap at final home game
Angels, tigers, chickens and superheroes lap up sunshine as faithful fans don fancy dress for the final away trips of the season
Newcastle loanee Loic Remy watches Arsenal victory over West Brom to fuel speculation of a move to the Emirates
Sam Allardyce turns attention to summer transfer business after West Ham secure Premier League status with win over Spurs
Jose Mourinho confused by Norwich negativity as Chelsea settle for third place
West Ham would have lost 14 points of their 32 and gone down in an instant. Job done. Yet think on because the ripples would not stop there.
Aston Villa would have gained two points and moved above Blackburn in 10th, Fulham would have gained two points to move three points clear of Wigan, who would also have been leapfrogged by Sheffield United’s addition of three. Wigan would then have fallen to 17th place and been the prime candidates to be caught by Charlton and relegated.
No doubt Dave Whelan would have had something to say about that.
Middlesbrough would have jumped Newcastle United and Manchester City into guaranteed safety, Arsenal would have moved to within a point of Liverpool in third place and Everton would have gone three clear of Bolton in fifth. And a fresh set of self-interested clubs would have been joining a campaign for fairness.
In the end, West Ham were fined and Sheffield United sued and sued until they found a judge barmy enough to rule that a club is not responsible for its own league position, and were awarded giant compensation. They put this to good use by getting relegated further.
And that is what the latest gang of three are looking for; a rogue ruling, a free pass for their own inadequacies. Cardiff have already tried it on once with a ludicrous protest that Crystal Palace discovered their team in advance of a 3-0 win.
Illegal: Sheffield United took West Ham to court over the signing of Carlos Tevez (left) in 2006
Now this. Yet the doomed haven’t dropped because Sunderland played Ji Dong-won. They fell because they made bad decisions, bought lousy players, appointed dud managers and displayed all the characteristics of clubs that did not merit a place in the Premier League.
If 16 unaffected associates joined their cause, they might have a case, but they won’t and they haven’t — for the same reason that no club joined Sheffield United’s bandwagon in 2007. The owners desire this regulatory Wild West.
They want to be immune from the botched form, the incompetent employee, the rogue registration, the malfunctioning fax machine, just the same.
The irony being that there is a league where a version of fairness reigns and an infringement such as the one Sunderland committed is punished, hard and fast, by the deduction of points. The relegated clubs will play in it next season. And you can see how delighted they are.