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Ched Evans - Not Guilty


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From Sheffield United's point of view, the likes of Lee Hughes and Luke McCormack were imprisoned for manslaughter/drunk driving and then given pro contracts again; they were merely allowing a convict to train with them upon release, after a request from the PFA. I don't think they expected the media furore as those two incidents didn't have one nearly as big as this one has been.

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From Sheffield United's point of view, the likes of Lee Hughes and Luke McCormack were imprisoned for manslaughter/drunk driving and then given pro contracts again; they were merely allowing a convict to train with them upon release, after a request from the PFA. I don't think they expected the media furore as those two incidents didn't have one nearly as big as this one has been.

I can't help but wonder if the large media interest was mostly because it was an international week which don't have much going on for the journos to write about at the best of times. No doubt it would have gotten some coverage regardless but I think it might have gotten buried under premier league or champions league instead of a not very exciting qualifying campaign for England.

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From Sheffield United's point of view, the likes of Lee Hughes and Luke McCormack were imprisoned for manslaughter/drunk driving and then given pro contracts again; they were merely allowing a convict to train with them upon release, after a request from the PFA. I don't think they expected the media furore as those two incidents didn't have one nearly as big as this one has been.

I can't help but wonder if the large media interest was mostly because it was an international week which don't have much going on for the journos to write about at the best of times. No doubt it would have gotten some coverage regardless but I think it might have gotten buried under premier league or champions league instead of a not very exciting qualifying campaign for England.

 

the media interest has mostly been driven by the petition and then celebrities coming out and kicking off hasn't it?

 

he's knackered in britain now like, just can't see anyone being willing to take a chance on him as they'll know the backlash that's coming their way if they do

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From Sheffield United's point of view, the likes of Lee Hughes and Luke McCormack were imprisoned for manslaughter/drunk driving and then given pro contracts again; they were merely allowing a convict to train with them upon release, after a request from the PFA. I don't think they expected the media furore as those two incidents didn't have one nearly as big as this one has been.

I can't help but wonder if the large media interest was mostly because it was an international week which don't have much going on for the journos to write about at the best of times. No doubt it would have gotten some coverage regardless but I think it might have gotten buried under premier league or champions league instead of a not very exciting qualifying campaign for England.

 

the media interest has mostly been driven by the petition and then celebrities coming out and kicking off hasn't it?

 

he's knackered in britain now like, just can't see anyone being willing to take a chance on him as they'll know the backlash that's coming their way if they do

maybe but I just feel with premier league and champions league going on it would have been more like "Ched Evans, Sheffield United, backlash and now lets talk about how Arsenal have failed this week or Manuel Pelegrini how long until he's sacked" ultimately those teams hoover up the news space but with  (for England) the only interesting things going on being Rooney 100 caps and the Scotland game it leaves more space to cover it. Maybe I'm being overly cynical.

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it's a restraint of trade, and as has been previously mentioned other cases have shown that they were provided with another opportunity. If these other so called celebrities of which in my mind Ennis and her ilk aren't, (they're only athletes whom in a few years will be nobodies (Daley Thompson) as an example, where is he?, at a later stage in their lives are discovered to have been upto wrong doing, tax evasion, saville type, etc etc then a sportsmans career will have been destroyed by those who also may have skeletons, Malky Mckay being another potential issue. I would like to assume that these other personalities would hand over all of their earnings as they under the this present onslaught thats going on, wouldn't of been entitled to a career.

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If he's done his time then football shouldn't turn its back on him. There's a huge problem in society with people unable to accept convicted criminals back into society, which leads to a huge problem with re-offending, that creates a pretty damn vicious cycle.

 

If he's done his time as per the rules of society then he's as good and free as anyone else to be a footballer.

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Not sure what to make of it really. Do feel a bit of sympathy for the club, who must be looking at the lack of grief Plymouth and Oldham got and thinking Why us?' On the flipside though they seem to market themselves as a particularly family friendly club (in the style of the mackems 'caring club' from the 90s) so fuck it you live by that, you die by it too.

 

 

On one hand this decision does seems like an example of football having grown up since the aforementioned incidents and is taking it's role in society more seriously. On the other hand I find it a little uncomfortable with what has really prompted the decision, that it's a case of who shouts loudest /who is more famous gets what they want. We have a legal system in place to deal with issues of crime, punishment, rehabilitation yet it's like another symptom of today's celebrity obsessed x-factor style culture. Taken to its extreme, why even bother with legal rules and institutions, might as well just establish guilt based on the opinion of who has most twitter followers, or have a live tv vote to determine what punishment someone gets.

 

 

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I though restraint of trade was a contract thing, where you make an agreement with a competitor or partner not to encroach on each others business, rather than something which applied to individuals as employees?

 

Edit: Example definition from the Oxford Dictionary of Law Enforcement

 

http://i.imgur.com/Dxv6uO3.png

 

Doesn't seem like it applies here and doesn't seem like it's always illegal.

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/30151774

Sheffield United co-chairman Jim Phipps says he is "angry" they have been forced to deny convicted rapist Ched Evans the chance to train at the club.

 

The Blades retracted the offer to Evans after heavy criticism and high-profile club supporters speaking out.

 

"I'm angry that we are not able to get a chance to do for this footballer what should be done," Phipps said.

 

"The influence of mob-like behaviour has made it difficult to take the simple step of allowing Ched to train."

 

The American added: "I'm upset that we are not able to do what we wanted to do.

 

"But I acknowledge that my view is not the only view. My principles and the board's principles are not the only thing that matter.

 

"I will acknowledge that our decision to not let Ched train is probably a decision that will make it harder for him to get on with his football career in the immediate future.

 

"The people who believe that Ched should be punished for the rest of his life might call that a victory. I think of it as a defeat for the principle that punishment under the justice system should be left to those that are authorised by law."

 

"Footballers must be treated the same way as everybody else before the law. They should have a right to rehabilitation like everybody else does.

 

"Ched was convicted and he has served his sentence. He now has a right and an obligation to go about making a livelihood."

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  • 4 weeks later...

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