coalman

I'm here for this. Though I'd go a step further. Relegate Chelsea as well then all three of us can go up (Hull as well). Extra bonus points for relegating Tottenham just because and Millwall can join the party too.

The police don't investigate GDPR breaches. It's not a criminal matter. You'd be talking to ICO (Information Commissioner's Office) for the UK https://ico.org.uk/ And, all they've said is that the spy used their bank card to buy a coffee. We have no evidence as to how they came to that statement. Maybe a member of staff recognised them. If they've done something like correlate hotel records with credit card records then they've been very naughty but unless someone is really stupid it's pretty much impossible to prove.

#KarenFCForumWatch They say forum memory is short and TeessideAcko is back. The 400 follower super poster has shared exclusive news that a replay might be on the 27th. This gives Neil Maddison a brief respite from the outrage being directed his way as hope is rediscovered before they, once again, remember Acko may be full of shit given that Hull shared that a quarter of an hour ago. One thing is very clear and that is that is all Southampton's fault and Karen FC have behaved peerlessly throughout. Will Acko return with another scoop? Only time will tell.

I dunno. I figured the Alan Partridge meme was poking fun at how ridiculous it would be to sack Maddison for having his own opinion.

The regulation exists though. It was brought in because of a previous example of this. So from an EFL perspective we're in breach of that regulation. The questions they then have to ask is how prevalent is it. Who knew what and when. Then they need to look at the punishment within the context of other punishments they've handed out to make sure it's proportionate to those. And therein lies the problem for the EFL. They have to make the punishment strong enough that people think twice in the future. They also have to keep it weak enough so that Saints don't have a case for it being disproportionate and feel they have to appeal. And, they also have to worry about how they get on top of teams trying to litigate results both now and in the future with the precedent they are setting. It's a fucking minefield and I do not envy the EFL this task. There's also the additional risk that it turns out that observing other teams is something that everyone is doing. So if they throw the book at Southampton and it turns out that actually analysts watching each others' teams is completely normal then they've completely shot themselves in the foot. It's worth noting that none of the other teams mentioned have said they've had any problem with it. Is that because they do the same or because they don't believe they've been spied on? In terms of handling their legal exposure against KarenFC the EFL need to be able to demonstrate that they've followed their process and it's been run by and independent body that hasn't had that independence compromised. If they've done this then there is no legal recourse from Karen Gibson against them so they're clear as his legal ire will turn towards his shakedown of Southampton (reprising his Derby approach). Looking at the Swindon judgement the panel have to take into account how much advantage was gained by sending someone to watch Boro that early before a match. And that's where it also gets tricky because, watching the first leg, it's hard to argue we gained any advantage at all. In the case of Swindon the judgement explicitly mentioned that Swindon gained a significant advantage, not least because one of the players who shouldn't have been on the pitch was their captain. And this factored in the severity of the punishment. The same argument, but to a greater extent would also factor into a future legal challenge against Southampton by Karen Gibson. How much advantage did we gain? Or, in this case what did KarenFC lose in this instance. Lawyers might argue £200 million based on the perceived value of being promoted though there's no guarantee they would have been promoted. One could make a reasonable case that their form over the last third of the season wasn't that of a team likely to win the play offs. You might also reasonably argue that it didn't alter the result of the semi final. It's a total mess. It's a mess of our making at least initially. Though KarenFC have gleefully played their part in amplifying it to this degree of mess (and, in doing so, may have made it much harder to prevail in court at a later date). Due to Saints' entirely professional stance of not going public with their evidence or rationale we honestly don't have a clue how this is going to turn out. However, the most likely outcome is somewhere between Leeds' punishment and Leicester's just for the sake of proportionality (my view).

Much as I support gathering together for a pointless and possibly overly hysterical witch hunt of another human being. Especially in these times of accusation throwing and rumour magnification. I do, however feel, it's more an indication that the rest of us have been posting utter shite.

It's one of those rumours that's been out there but doesn't seem to be substantiated to any extent. I would've thought that's a pretty weak point to build any defence around and something that could explode in our faces.

Honestly, it's unclear. As we haven't gone public with what we're planning to put before them. From everything I've read I don't think anyone is contesting that someone was there watching KarenFC training. If so then it's a matter of sharing what our internal investigation surfaced and any mitigations we think there are.

#KarenFCForumWatch The unspeakable has happened. After a brief period of who watches the watchers things have taken a dark turn. In the middle of some harmless witch hunting of former Southampton and Middlesborough player, Neil Maddison, it has been proposed that a suitable replacement would be James Corden. Has the moral argument been lost? One would hope saner voices will prevail and pull them back from the brink. Some things are just a step too far.

It's actually harder than you think. Though between our two fora and reddit it's possible to see all the insane conspiracy theories in near real time. Watching two groups of people oscillate in and out of certainty is a fascinating process and possibly the clearest example I've found as to why the Internet messes people up. As for Gibbo, I'll take my chances. Usually I only piss off billionaires so it's a nice change of pace.

It's getting published tonight. I'm nearly 1% sure of that fact.

Surely we've already seen about 20 different rulings "published". This challenge is over before it began.

#KarenFCForumWatch A brief lull in proceedings after a brief, but ultimately doomed, attempt to identify the poster known as TeessideAcko. During which time various forum members admit posting literally anything they can find on the Internet that's supportive of Karen FC as fact. At least one member is considering writing a formal complaint to BBC Tees over Nail Maddison's betrayal. Some likening his betrayal of "Gibbo" to an earlier historical event involving one J. Iscariot. The mood can be described as more "high on spirits" than "spirits are high".

#KarenFCForumWatch TeessideAcko's post has led to scenes of jubilation among the faithful. Posters were metaphorically dancing in the streets until some wet blanket pointed out the poster is a wind up merchant known for talking bullshit. You join us as the scenes of joy slowly die out and the forum reverts to it's previous steady state of expecting Gibbo to go and sort them.

He may be a good lad, but apparently once "Gibbo" finds out he'll pay the penalty.

It's oddly compulsive. Watching two groups of people having meltdowns over different things and having to deal with my own doubts about what is real and what is not.

Well that's that then. It was a good run, lads.

I bet his 400 followers are breathless with anticipation.

#KarenFCForumWatch The forum has now turned on Neil Maddison for suggesting that Saints shouldn't be thrown out of the final and liking one or more Finn Azaz "going to Wembley" posts on Instagram. They've finally cottoned on to the "submission" being generated by ChatGPT. Confidence in Gibbo remains high.

Just not a striker in January.

There's been lot of noise and made up stuff on the Internet. Public opinion has shifted decisively against Middlesbrough on the BBC HYS after they released a statement complaining they weren't allowed to talk at the hearing. And it's not Middlesbrough FC anymore. It's Karen FC

https://fmttmboro.com/index.php?threads/breaking-news.81160/page-115

The Karen FC Forum are convinced it's the final nail in our coffin.

Be sure to tell him it's not Middlesbrough any more. They've been rebranded

Can we rename this to "The Karen FC Appreciation Thread", please?