Tonda Eckert

[Doctoroncall]

Not sure if posted, the FA have increased the minimum punishment on aggravated breach:

The FA is to increase the minimum punishment for discriminatory behaviour to 10 matches, in an attempt to counteract behaviour it says “continues to be a challenge across the game”.

The changes will come into force at the start of the new season and will apply to players and other football participants who are found guilty of an “aggravated breach” of the FA’s disciplinary rules on improper conduct, effectively actions that included discriminatory behaviour against any protected characteristics. Currently the minimum suspension for such a breach is six matches.

Charges against Tonda weren’t aggravated but wonder on the timing of this release of changes to the punishments. 

[sadoldgit]

2 hours ago, Lighthouse said:

We employed a level of subterfuge, albeit in a laughably bad manner, in order to gain inside information on their entire game plan and formations. It’s like playing blackjack, looking at everyone else’s cards and trying to claim you’re not cheating and the ‘benefit is marginal’.

It is nothing like cheating at cards as well you know. If you look at someone’s cards the benefit is enormous. Looking at a training session, as we have discovered ourselves, does not guarantee that you win the match.

[Lighthouse]

1 hour ago, OnceaSaintalwaysaSaint said:

Literally every friend I have who are season ticket holders at other clubs think we've been hard done by. Everyone. They all say the whole thing is a nonsense and we've been sh*t on.

It wasn't cheating. It was scouting.  

On another tack. When I said to my son, what employer would keep an employee that has lost the club potentially £200 million, his argument is we were nowhere near the play offs when he became manager. I've never thought of it like this.

As I’ve said before, if this exact same scenario had played out with Pompey ‘scouting’ one of our training sessions before beating us in the playoffs, I’m sure this forum would be unanimous in agreeing that it’s no big deal and wishing those chaps down the road all the very best of luck in the Premier League.

 

No amount of friends feeling things are going to wash away the fact that we deliberately broke the rules to gain an advantage before a crucial playoff game, knowing full well it wasn’t acceptable after the Bielsa saga seven years ago.

[TheSoundman]

14 minutes ago, sadoldgit said:

It is nothing like cheating at cards as well you know. If you look at someone’s cards the benefit is enormous. Looking at a training session, as we have discovered ourselves, does not guarantee that you win the match.

It's interesting that in this case it's the 'intent' that seems to count, rather than the result, which is actually quite unusual.

If you drink and drive then get pulled over you might get banned, but if you hit someone and kill them, you'll probably end up in prison. The intent is the same, the outcome is down to (mis)fortune, but that's what you'll be judged on. The same could be said on the pitch when the defender tries to pull back a forward when he's through on goal. If the forward shakes free and has a shot, the defender gets away with it, but if the forward goes down, it's probably a red. The intent was the same though.

I know I'm rambling, but we gained no advantage from this stupidity, and yet we're being crucified as a club. It's not often you get judged on intent alone...

Edited 3 hours ago by TheSoundman

[Weston Super Saint]

26 minutes ago, Doctoroncall said:

Not sure if posted, the FA have increased the minimum punishment on aggravated breach:

The FA is to increase the minimum punishment for discriminatory behaviour to 10 matches, in an attempt to counteract behaviour it says “continues to be a challenge across the game”.

The changes will come into force at the start of the new season and will apply to players and other football participants who are found guilty of an “aggravated breach” of the FA’s disciplinary rules on improper conduct, effectively actions that included discriminatory behaviour against any protected characteristics. Currently the minimum suspension for such a breach is six matches.

Charges against Tonda weren’t aggravated but wonder on the timing of this release of changes to the punishments. 

Sounds like they will only affect offences committed this season, so won't apply to Tonda for last season...

[MB]

Being announced tomorrow apparently

[obelisk]

3 hours ago, Lighthouse said:

We employed a level of subterfuge, albeit in a laughably bad manner, in order to gain inside information on their entire game plan and formations. It’s like playing blackjack, looking at everyone else’s cards and trying to claim you’re not cheating and the ‘benefit is marginal’.

Ludicrous. Get a grip.

[obelisk]

1 hour ago, Lighthouse said:

if this exact same scenario had played out with Pompey ‘scouting’ one of our training sessions before beating us in the playoffs

The difference is that Saints have erected fences in order to stop other clubs scouts getting a look whereas Gibbo's lot were doing their work in public. It's about time that the pearl clutchers got a grip.

[StrangelyBrown]

3 minutes ago, obelisk said:

The difference is that Saints have erected fences in order to stop other clubs scouts getting a look whereas Gibbo's lot were doing their work in public. It's about time that the pearl clutchers got a grip.

It's like going on holiday and leaving your front door open and then being pissed off that you got burgled...

Edited 1 hour ago by StrangelyBrown

[hypochondriac]

37 minutes ago, MB said:

Being announced tomorrow apparently

If that's true I assume the club already know what it's leaning towards. Is it a coincidence that the echo and solent are all there along with Solak? Can we read much into the fact that Tonda hasn't done much in the way of interviews this week?

[Verbal]

3 hours ago, Matthew Le God said:

 

If I look at your cards in a game of poker, is that cheating or scouting?

Scouting. 

[Lighthouse]

33 minutes ago, obelisk said:

The difference is that Saints have erected fences in order to stop other clubs scouts getting a look whereas Gibbo's lot were doing their work in public. It's about time that the pearl clutchers got a grip.

I'm not sure we have the same definition of that idiom, or what exactly I'm supposed to get a grip of (other than pearls, obviously). I'm not the least bit shocked or outraged that we got kicked out of the playoffs or that Tonda may get banned. Probably the most surprising thing for me in this whole saga was that we didn't sack Tonda.