sadoldgit

The modern equivalent of hung, drawn and quartered.

Not even removing the 4 point deduction is very harsh, it is liking kicking the living shit out of us and then spitting on the body as they walk away. Don’t they really think they punished us enough with the expulsion?

It doesn’t mean he is crap at his job though.

He has proved himself to be an excellent coach, that much is certain. He broke a stupid rule, so what? It doesn’t mean he isn’t any good. Despite everything, it is what happens on the pitch that is important and he proved himself up to it no matter what. i don’t know if it has been mentioned, but Thierry Henry has written a brilliant piece about this on X. I have to be honest, this is a difficult one. Spying on another team’s training is wrong. Full stop. It crosses a line, it undermines the trust that should exist between clubs, and I understand why Middlesbrough are furious and why the EFL felt they had to act strongly. Integrity matters in this game. At the same time, I find myself questioning whether expulsion from the play-offs is the right punishment. It feels… heavy. Almost like using a sledgehammer when a precise scalpel was needed. Let’s be clear: this wasn’t match-fixing or doping. It was analysts pushing boundaries for tactical information, something that, sadly, has happened in different forms across the game for years. Marcelo Bielsa did it openly at Derby and Leeds, admitted it, and people called him a genius, not a criminal. Drones, analysts in trees, whatever, in the modern game with data and marginal gains everywhere, clubs push boundaries. Southampton admitted it, yes, and they deserve punishment. A heavy fine, points deduction, maybe even a ban for the staff involved. But kicking the entire club out after they earned their place on the pitch? That punishes players, coaches, and fans who had nothing to do with one or two analysts doing something stupid. What troubles me most is the collateral damage. The players who battled through a tough Championship season after relegation, who went to extra time and scored that late goal to beat Middlesbrough on the pitch, they earned their place in the final through merit. Now that achievement is being erased because of actions taken by a small number of staff members. That feels disproportionate to me. A significant fine, a points deduction for next season, and sanctions against the individuals responsible, those would be strong, meaningful punishments that address the breach without nullifying an entire season’s competitive work. Sport has to balance two things: protecting fairness and recognising that human error and ambition sometimes lead people astray. If every rules breach in high-stakes moments leads to rewriting results, we risk turning the disciplinary process into something more powerful than the football itself. I’ve sat in dressing rooms where we prepared meticulously for opponents. Everyone does. The difference is getting caught. I hope Southampton appeal and that the final decision finds a better equilibrium. Middlesbrough deserve respect, they were wronged but the players of Southampton also deserve not to have their legitimate efforts wiped away. Football is emotional, passionate, and imperfect. The response to this should reflect wisdom as much as outrage. We need clearer rules going forward so incidents like this become rare, but we must be careful not to let one mistake destroy what was built legitimately on the grass.

This is the issue. The EFL have not set out the penalty if found guilty of this crime, just a range of sanctions that can be used. A panel then has to decide subjectively what punishment they think is suitable. We don’t think that our crimes warrant expulsion. Middlesbrough do. We all have our own thoughts. How do you decide what is a fair, reasonable and proportionate penalty? Whether we think the club have been doing it all season (how did that work out for Will Still?) is neither here nor there. We were charge with 3 breaches of the law. Just 3, across a whole season. I just don’t know how anyone can think this punishment is fair, reasonable and proportionate (apart from Gibbo and the Boro fans of course).

Which makes the whole thing a farce.

God knows. It does not alter what actually happened though. People do things all the time that have no material effect on an outcome.

So we had less time to prepare for them in the hearing?

I saw the match in which we were totally battered for a great deal of it. What difference does someone make standing around a quarter of a mile away with an iPhone? Even pros are saying it would have made any difference. If it was a big deal don’t you think that the EPL would have the same rule?

We have admitted to breaking the rules. 14 days makes no difference to our defence. The only thing we can go back with it the harsh penalty.

Because they lost over two games and the cheating had no material effect to the result. It is ridiculous that you can lose but still win. The only reason they lost is down to their shortcomings on the pitch.

Hmmm, I thought that there was no chance that we would be kicked out, so who knows what will happen next?

Exactly. The problem the EFL now have that this sanction is a precedent, if upheld. All wrong doing will use this as an example of not acting in good faith and the expectation will be that any clubs breaking rules could be subject to “nuclear” sanctions.

Who would have thought that a bloke with an iPhone and a dodgy pair of jeans a good quarter of a mile away from a bunch of footballers could cause so much grief?

Me neither, but Gibson managed to make it all about ethics and turned it into a big deal. The ironic thing is the word “ethics” has no place in modern professional football.

I would to, especially if he wasn’t aware that it was illegal (which begs the question why not). He is clearly a very good coach which begs another question, why do this when you have hours of videos available to look at the check out the opposition. Sadly I think his position is untenable though. He would get a good job abroad where they will all be amazed at what a storm a bit of scouting on the opposition has caused.

I’m guessing it is the 14 day thing which is just procedural and, although important, doesn’t exonerate us from breaking the EFL rules. At most I think it would just give us a stay of execution. I think we will get the 4 points back on appeal but other than that, we are cooked. How galling is it that Middlesbrough get beaten properly on the pitch over two games though and still get a chance to win promotion? What a joke the EFL is.

Which is absolutely fine if it applies to every club, including the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea.

If it is true that everybody is doing it and we know for a fact that it isn’t even an issue in the EPL, isn’t that a bit extreme? Our crime seems to be naivety.

More like Trigger!

I’m conflicted. Part of me wants to see Hull hammer them but part of me also wants them to go up and have a worse season in the Prem than we did.

But apparently it is still cheating as you get more of an advantage by scouting within 72 hours. Apparently.

Potentially £200m for scouting 3 teams with the 72 hour limit does not sound proportionate no matter which way you look at it.

The world is turning to shit everywhere you look.

There is no such thing as bad publicity. Perhaps we should charge them a premium?