Thetownend.com

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/26878545 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/26878545)

Sunderland of all teams!

Some things never change, shit on the small teams and let the big ones get away with a slap on the wrist.  ::)

This is usually a points deduction, right?

That is disgraceful..

Only a couple of weeks ago....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/26596671

Alfreton deducted 3 points for a similar offence. Hartlepool were also deducted 3 points a few years back for the same offence.

It does show that if you are one of the bigger clubs then you can get away with pretty much anything....as proved by the Chelsea and Spurs being fined for what Swindon were relegated 2 league for back in the 80's.

It seems to be quite common in non-league that teams get deducted points for fielding ineligible players.

There is so much money in the Premiership these days that a fine is hardly likely to put other teams off if they are in a position to potentially flaunt the rules in this manner.

Another example of why football is just so wrong at the top level.

Trouble is Sunderland come under PL rules and the others were user FL rules

Yep, the fact there are 2 organisations (FA & PL) running the game in this country causes numerous problems.

They probably hate each other.

Yep, which suggests to me that PL rules are a load of crap.

Apparently in the games he played they gained 1 point.

Also played against MK Dongs in the cup which they obviously reached the final.

They were fined in December when the Capital One up was still in the early ish  rounds but were still allowed to carry on.

Loads of teams have been chucked out of the FA Cup for exactly the same offence

Joke. absolute joke.

Preston to face a points deduction?  Thor will be having sleepless nights.  But we could be on the p/os

One of the games he played in was in the League Cup which is under FL rules. They knew about the issue in December but Sunderland were still allowed to carry on.

What an absolute piss take.

Yet another example of there being one rule for them, another rule for everyone else.

I would relegate the b'stards 2 divisions to see how they like it, after they benefitted from 1990 !!

Seriously, I don't like how underhand it's all been done in the secretive part of the PL. Hell, we don't even know how much they've been fined. They should have at least had their point earned, whilst the player was on the pitch deducted.

So football doesn't exist outside the Premiership then?

Exactly. How many other teams have been quietly fined without anyone else knowing about it?

It is, obviously, completely wrong and utterly hypocritical and typical of the Premiership's "sweep everything under the carpet, don't damage the brand" approach, but Sunderland a "big team"? Seriously?

Although I don't look on them as a historical "big club" any team that can regularly draw 45,000 plus must be classed as a fairly big club.

True, but this was being used in the context of them having clout within the Premier League. In that context, they're hardly a Spurs/Arsenal/Man Utd/Chelsea. They're not even an Everton, just one of several yo-yo clubs who flit in and out of the Premier League as relegation cannon fodder for the "proper" top flight clubs to pick points up off (or act as the occasional banana skin)

Well, at least there's some shit at Sunderland that can't be blamed on Paolo.

They'll get relegated anyway

He was in charge for 3 of the 4 games concerned.

That's me told!!

I blame Paolo now

Ha ha, in fairness, it's the club secretary's job. I doubt many managers would know about that kind of stuff, they'd just assume the secretary had filed the correct paperwork

So the PL decided to do nothing after being told by Sunderland.

Did they inform the FL at the same time re the Capital One Cup competition they were in?

Not tht I have any sympathy for the Dongs but I'd be mightily pissed off

Fucking scandalous decision.

The premiership so desperate not to harm the "brand". Its a load of shit, they broke the rules and they should have been correctly punished. Sunderland  cheating, Tranmere caught up in dodgy betting. I bet the cunts still think they are so rosy

On their worst run of the season with one point out of a possible 18 - they're quite capable of going down even breaking the rules. 

The lack of transparency between the discovery of the offence and the reporting of the outcome would be disturbing if anyone here gave a XXXX about the premiershit

I'm disgusted, but not remotely surprised.

The premiership has been amazing this season, I haven't followed the FL ( with the exception of us) much this season to be honest.

It's another reason to want Sunderland to go down that's for sure, and interesting to see if Preston will lose any points....

FA Cup:

Badford City expelled: http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/206396647
Bury expelled: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/fa_cup/6215275.stm
Droylsden: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/fa_cup/7799125.stm

And that's just the cup competitions.

TBH I wouldn't expect, or want, Preston to be penalised because of the actions of some of their individual players.

Doesn't sit well with me

Not surprised at all...

Preston should be left alone but players given massive bans.

If you look at how the PL spared WHU from a points deduction over the Tevez there is a degree of corrupt consistency

It's all to late now for the FL now but they could at least give them a fine equivalent to the £ Sunderland made out of their little run to the Final, surely?

I don't think the FL will do anything other than a nominal fine at best. They are desperate to keep the PL teams in the League Cup to give it credibility, even though that's rewarded by most PL teams playing their reserves.

Ditto the FA Cup, the FA do fuck all about PL teams playing weakened teams for the fear the PL will go it alone.

As an aside, does anyone have credible links to the actual events of our demotion and what Spurs / Chelsea did as well? There's too much anecdotal bollocks for me, I could do with actual facts to back up my never ending sense of grievance.

Obviously just me but I have some sympathy with Sunderland. He was their player who had returned from a season long loan at another club, and they forgot they had to re-register him.

And whilst they have made a mistake, it's not (in my opinion) as bad as signing a new player and not registering them.

Also, from what I understand the woman responsible in the clubs offices who made the mistake was immediately fired.

Rather than being fined...