Ups & Downs 25/26

[WestYorksRoyal]

The EFL normally publish details of the arguments made and reasons for the sanction. Will make interesting reading when they do.

[Scutterbucketz]

Appeal Rejected

[John Madejski's Wallet]

They wouldn't be doing it at all if there was nothing to gain from it.

Didn't help in the other two instances did it?

I do also find it confusing that the exact same offense, by the exact same team, gets different penalties at the same time. i.e. punishment for doing it against Ipswich/Oxford & Middlesbrough

[WestYorksRoyal]

They wouldn't be doing it at all if there was nothing to gain from it.

Didn't help in the other two instances did it?

I do also find it confusing that the exact same offense, by the exact same team, gets different penalties at the same time. i.e. punishment for doing it against Ipswich/Oxford & Middlesbrough

This isn't hard to understand. The penalty for league fixtures was 2 points for each proven offence. You cannot deduct 2 points for a knock out tie, so the only remaining sporting sanction is to let the other team through at their expense.

[windermereROYAL]

Bet Harwood-Bellis isn`t taking the piss now.

[Stranded]

Will be an interesting couple of days now and the EFL (not that this was their decision) must be hoping Hull win on Saturday as that seems like the only "fair" outcome.

Will Hull look to stop the game and demand promotion?

How will the Soton players react given that this was nothing to do with them - could they have an argument that the clubs behaviour was actually a breach of contract and demand to walk away and join another side?

[SouthDownsRoyal]

If they have admitted spying on Oxford and Ipswich it won’t end there.

Why would they spy on just two random teams during a whole season pre playoffs?

I still don't get advantage in all this ...... they lost those Ipswich & Oxford games.

It's not like NFL or something where teams can rehearse certain plays, Football teams don't even really change their style game to game

It’s crazy and in this day and age everyone has so much access to clips, matches, data etc it’s not like decades ago.

Did this twonk not think to at least wear meta glasses to covertly record rather than stand with an iPhone

[katweslowski]

How will the Soton players react given that this was nothing to do with them - could they have an argument that the clubs behaviour was actually a breach of contract and demand to walk away and join another side?

That's a really interesting point and I thought this last night. The players are professional sportsman, they are offered contracts and their acceptance is based on their ambition to get to a certain, or to achieve something, to earn bonus for scoring, promotion, etc.

So it's a commercial deal and quite understandably they have both their financial interests in mind, as well as their sporting ambitions.

Like you say, they all woudl have worked hard all season and in the play offs to get to the final, and quite possibly would have gone up. That would have likely triggered a bonus, increase in wages, ability to renegotiate, even to move to another club - at the very least a ton of extra money, exposure, advertising deals, opportunities, etc.

Now they're "stuck" back in the Championship, back to square one and none of if is their fault. Their employer royally fecked up.

I would be amazed if they don't have some kind of legal argument here to claim losses of some kind.

[Royal Rother]

Bet Harwood-Bellis isn`t taking the piss now.

[Royal Rother]

They wouldn't be doing it at all if there was nothing to gain from it.

Didn't help in the other two instances did it?

So you've only gained an unfair advantage if you win as a result?

[Stranded]

How will the Soton players react given that this was nothing to do with them - could they have an argument that the clubs behaviour was actually a breach of contract and demand to walk away and join another side?

That's a really interesting point and I thought this last night. The players are professional sportsman, they are offered contracts and their acceptance is based on their ambition to get to a certain, or to achieve something, to earn bonus for scoring, promotion, etc.

So it's a commercial deal and quite understandably they have both their financial interests in mind, as well as their sporting ambitions.

Like you say, they all woudl have worked hard all season and in the play offs to get to the final, and quite possibly would have gone up. That would have likely triggered a bonus, increase in wages, ability to renegotiate, even to move to another club - at the very least a ton of extra money, exposure, advertising deals, opportunities, etc.

Now they're "stuck" back in the Championship, back to square one and none of if is their fault. Their employer royally fecked up.

I would be amazed if they don't have some kind of legal argument here to claim losses of some kind.

Yeah, the grey area is of course the fact that they would have to have won on Saturday to trigger any and all promotion releated bonuses/pay rises but the actions of the club have taken that opportunity away - also the trust between them as employees and their employer has now been broken. There is absolutely no way they can start next season with Eckert in charge.

If Hull lose on Saturday it will be interesting* to see if they have any footing to make a claim as from a fair sporting competition perspective they have been really hit the hardest. Since Soton won the SF, Hull will have been preparing to meet them or will have had to split the time prepping for 2 potential opponents.

Meanwhile, whilst neither Boro/Soton will have known 100% if they were going to be in the final, they were training with the full knowledge that if they play, they will be playing Hull and could prep accordingly.

[Stranded]

They wouldn't be doing it at all if there was nothing to gain from it.

Didn't help in the other two instances did it?

So you've only gained an unfair advantage if you win as a result?

You've just not used it,

And if Soton really expect people to believe that these were the only 3 times they've done it this season...

[Dirk Gently]

How will the Soton players react given that this was nothing to do with them - could they have an argument that the clubs behaviour was actually a breach of contract and demand to walk away and join another side?

That's a really interesting point and I thought this last night. The players are professional sportsman, they are offered contracts and their acceptance is based on their ambition to get to a certain, or to achieve something, to earn bonus for scoring, promotion, etc.

So it's a commercial deal and quite understandably they have both their financial interests in mind, as well as their sporting ambitions.

Like you say, they all woudl have worked hard all season and in the play offs to get to the final, and quite possibly would have gone up. That would have likely triggered a bonus, increase in wages, ability to renegotiate, even to move to another club - at the very least a ton of extra money, exposure, advertising deals, opportunities, etc.

Now they're "stuck" back in the Championship, back to square one and none of if is their fault. Their employer royally fecked up.

I would be amazed if they don't have some kind of legal argument here to claim losses of some kind.

They all took a 40% pay cut for this season, on the understanding that if they went up they'd go back to previous, PL, wage levels. So I don't doubt that a good number of them are on the phone to their agents right now, and that those agents will soon be on the phone to their lawyers.

[Dirk Gently]

There is absolutely no way they can start next season with Eckert in charge.

I would expect Eckert, plus a number of others at the club, to be banned from football for a year.

[katweslowski]

Either way, it's absolutely fantastic entertainment as an outsider. I think I'll go over to the Southampton forum in a bit just to see if they're still all banging on about how harsh it is.

[windermereROYAL]

Seems like it`s not over yet, the FA have launched an investigation, talk about kicking them when they`re down, don`t like them much anyway so fcuk em.

[windermereROYAL]

Either way, it's absolutely fantastic entertainment as an outsider. I think I'll go over to the Southampton forum in a bit just to see if they're still all banging on about how harsh it is.

202 pages so far. 192 when they got the verdict.
https://www.saintsweb.co.uk/topic/62090 ... -playoffs/

[Dirk Gently]

Seems like it`s not over yet, the FA have launched an investigation, talk about kicking them when they`re down, don`t like them much anyway so fcuk em.

See my post two above yours. Bans incoming...

[Dirk Gently]

Either way, it's absolutely fantastic entertainment as an outsider. I think I'll go over to the Southampton forum in a bit just to see if they're still all banging on about how harsh it is.

It's brilliant stuff. And likely to run and run and run - the impact on Southampton as a club will me immense. Can confidently see them in League One in a year's time.

[Royal Rother]

Specialist sports lawyers will be rubbing their hands (and anything else that takes their fancy) with glee.