Benwell Lad

Spot on.

Were they going for a kerry? Aye, and Rueben Agboola was going with them too.

He is a very lucky fella. It will be great to have him back so early. Just a shame we can't have the points back that they cheated us out of.

Sadly nowadays whenever we have a large away following it seems to attract these idiots. I know that regular away fans get really pissed off with the idiotic behaviour. Little wonder the club are taking smaller allocations most of the time.

Hope he's enjoying the recuperation period. My advice to any injured player would be to get the fuck away from our sub-zero temperatures if you possibly can.

Not sure how it would benefit us though. Surely when they're back in the SPL, they'll not have the budget to go and spend straight away but will still be near the top and competing to play in Europe. You'd think sending our young players there, playing in front of 48,000 every week would be better than League One/Two where the standard is similar? Regarding the crowd, atmosphere etc you make a good point, but the Scottish 3rd is nowhere near L1 or L2 level. Rangers may be an exception but most S3 sides would struggle in the Unibond or whatever it's called, i.e. the level above the Northern league. I was talking more in terms of a couple of years time. Get a link with them now, won't be particularly beneficial in Good's respect, but a season or two down the line, if the link is in place, it might be good. Sorry, my mistake thought you meant Scottish 3, but agree SPL would be a good place to gain experience.

He's been a great club man and in my opinion, and many others I know who watched them both, he was at least Given's equal. It was Given's more dominant personality which kept him in the number one spot. Harper's an intelligent and likeable person, it's a shame they can't find a position in the club for him but I'm sure he'll have no shortage of offers in media etc.

Not sure how it would benefit us though. Surely when they're back in the SPL, they'll not have the budget to go and spend straight away but will still be near the top and competing to play in Europe. You'd think sending our young players there, playing in front of 48,000 every week would be better than League One/Two where the standard is similar? Regarding the crowd, atmosphere etc you make a good point, but the Scottish 3rd is nowhere near L1 or L2 level. Rangers may be an exception but most S3 sides would struggle in the Unibond or whatever it's called, i.e. the level above the Northern league.

Sorry mate I remember the incident but couldn't say who we were playing. I'm sure someone will be able to enlighten us.

Got there a few months before you. Grimsby Town on January 18th that year, we won 4-0 Next game I went to Bury beat us 4-0 at SJP. Been a life sentence since

Jeff Beck anyone ? Nah forget I said that..........

He won the ball as “clean as a whistle”.

Another quite sobering fact from this is that left back is a position we've had a problem with for a while and certainly no real cover. Carr, Pardew, Dekka and Ashley went about rectifying that and in Haidara most of us have seen a great player with potential to go on and achieve big things. One moment of unpunished thuggery may have taken that away and put us back to square one and ended a very promising career. Let's hope not but the more I see that tackle the more I fear for him.

While the dabate over the FA's lack of action and refereeing incompetence continues, I'm actually surprised there is any debate regarding the tackle itself. He went out to do Haidara, he succeeded in doing him good and proper, and that's about all there is to say.

Wigan Athletic chairman Dave Whelan defended midfielder McManaman following the tackle by claiming he won the ball as “clean as a whistle”.

Fucking bang on. Always liked Parker as a player and a person and he's summed up the cowardly tackle and aftermath perfectly there.

Although written with tongue in cheek humour, the parallel you draw is spot on. It's just plain ludicrous that's he's got off.

No. Why should he ? Any show of remorse would merely be an orchestrated publicity stunt now, designed for his own benefit. Anyone with half a brain knows that he intended the tackle and went out to do Haidara, so any apology would have a very hollow ring to it. What may help him from a PR point of view would be a face transplant to make him look less like David off Coronation Street - undoubtedly one of the ugliest and most punchable faces on the planet.

When the furore over this game subsides a little and emotions aren't running quite so high we're going to look at it in the cold light of day and realise just what it will do to our season. Due to the thug being allowed to stay on the pitch and a general refereeing display of almost unbelievable incompetence/bias we have lost one of our top defenders with a minimum of 10 vitally important games still to play. The one point we would certainly have got, or the three we would most probably have gained, would have put sufficient daylight between us and 3rd bottom to allow a full on tilt at the Europa League. As it is now we will have to go in to the Europa League games with a cautious approach due to our league position and weakened squad. The two or three points which Martinez' side gained by cheating on Sunday could well condemn another club to relegation. The story of this game may have some distance to run yet.

For any of our friends on here who's second language is English and may have wondered what the expression "to add insult to injury" means, then today is a perfect explanation.

Nothing in the FA statement would assist their defence if Newcastle did go down a legal compensation route. I think they owe it to Haidara to ensure that justice prevails, now that the FA have failed in their duty.

There is indeed a principle, but this was quite extraordinary and should have been treat accordingly.

Sunday's events had me thinking the same even before today's decision. Very fishy.

Admin people, we should have a MacManaman watch thread. These others will go with time but it would be interseting to keep a close watch on how the cunt's career progresses.

nope Nothing but lies and insults so far.