Boston Gate Part III

A 'cheat's charter'?

Alun Thomas updates us (click here for part one and part two)

Boston is a dirty word at the moment after the fiasco of 11 January, but in the main the inconvenience of many was down to the incompetence of the referee. The snooty (to say nothing of snotty) switchboard woman who fielded supporters' calls (and who rebuked me for being the first caller of the day on the Monday) is perhaps more indicative of a club still in turmoil. I expected my first Bostongate article (RP39, and also featuring the problems at Peterborough) to be a one-off, but this is the third with an update yet to come. Bear with me.

The case against former Pilgrims boss Steve Evans was due to be heard at the City Ground, Nottingham, on 11 November, but was postponed after some quite staggering irregularities came to light. At the request of the FA's barrister, all potential witnesses were warned not to discuss relevant evidence with third parties, but key witness Ken Charlery (currently playing for media darlings Farnborough) showed defence statements to his club manager and used them during an unrelated Conference tribunal. At the same time, all Evans' defence statements were offered to The Non- League Paper by a 'senior football figure.'

Steve Evans eventually pleaded guilty on four counts regarding contractual irregularities and trying to obstruct the inquiry. He cited 'sloppy admin' in his defence, including leaving a nought off the contract of former Liverpool star Mike Marsh, who was paid £1,000 per week rather than the £100 stated on his contract. Evans and his team are waiting for his punishment to be announced before lodging their appeal, but they seem to have been given hope by an unlikely source - the FA themselves!

The FA's decision to release for publication, in the Sunday Telegraph, details of the hearing has been met with incredulity by Evans' legal team. The FA's Compliance Officer claimed the case was one 'to make your hair stand on end'. The fact that the ST article had been authorised by the FA's legal department before Evans' punishment was announced was described as 'extraordinary' by leading barrister Jim Sturman, head of the defence for Evans. Sturman, incidentally, is much feared by the FA, having acted successfully for them in the past. 

Meanwhile Steve Evans continues to make headlines away from the case. He was in court recently to answer four charges of driving at between 85 and 95mph in a 70mph limit. In court, he claimed that he has been offered a job as manager at an 'unnamed' club once a buyout is complete and that he would be unable to carry out his duties if he lost his licence. Despite ALREADY having 14 points on his licence, he was let off with a fine! I thought 12 points meant an automatic ban, but I suppose it depends who you are...

It's common knowledge that Evans lives just outside Peterborough, and London Road is generally seen as his next port of call - assuming that the proposed takeover ever happens there, of course. In my previous Bostongate item, I mentioned that one of the consortia bidding for control of Posh had missed a mere nine deadlines to complete the purchase. They've since missed four more, despite lodging £25,000 with the club to secure 'sole buyer' status. Meanwhile a new consortium, led by the owner of Grays Athletic, has joined in the fun. 

Patience is running short among Posh fans, many of whom have sworn not to attend another game while Barry Fry remains in charge. Indeed, 156 put their names to a letter in the local paper to say so. Unfortunately the effect of this was reduced by some of their addresses, which included Canada, the USA, Ireland and Oman. Somehow the vision of a weekly jet from the Sultanate disgorging blue-and-white clad fans chanting 'Fry Out!' is a bit far-fetched and London Road gates are unlikely to be affected.

The nadir for many came in the FA Cup defeat at Rochdale, where Fry's close friend Colin Hill, a millionaire with no footballing pedigree, was seen in the dugout shouting instructions to the players while Fry sat impassively in the background. Fry cuts a lonely figure these days, a far cry from the ebullient Bazza of the mid-1990s. He even admitted that he found it difficult to motivate himself for games, let alone the team. Yet, like Evans, Fry has found sympathy from an unlikely source. Following the disgraceful vandalisation of his club Jaguar, registration POS11, in the London Road car park (where security is clearly as tight as the team's defence), police are also investigating a suspicious blowout suffered by the car on the A1 as Fry was on his way home to Bedford. Following this, previously unlikely letters of support for Fry have been appearing in the local press

As if the club hadn't got enough problems, a D-list celebrity called Victoria Beckham has been trying to patent the 'Posh' nickname, claiming that she is better known by the sobriquet than they are, despite the club having been recognised by it since the 1920s. This came at the end of a week when Victoria and her kids were exposed as the targets of a group of kidnappers. You'd have thought she'd have had more important things on her mind. Still, priorities and all that...

Wrexham supporters at Boston on the 19 February will be able to gauge the level of malaise among home fans. For them, it will probably never go away. Meanwhile, at Peterborough (like Wrexham a club with a history of attractive football and giant-killing) the uncertainty continues.