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A battle may have been lost, but the war certainly isn’t over yet. As anger amongst Coventry City supporters hit a new crescendo at the end of last week following the decision by the administrator of the club, Paul Appleton, to sel...
A battle may have been lost, but the war certainly isn’t over yet. As anger amongst Coventry City supporters hit a new crescendo at the end of last week following the decision by the administrator of the club, Paul Appleton, to sell it back to, effectively, the company that had put it into administration in the first place, albeit via a different legal entity – exactly the sort of legal sleight of hand which give the industry such a bad name in the first place – it is starting to feel as if the times are a-changing, with a new spirit of protest having been born amongst some and even, albeit a tiny minority at the moment, are even starting to say that it might even be better to sever links and start afresh with a new club than to continue to fund SISU’s desecration of their club. The Football League’s statement on the matter of the take-over itself was cagey, to say the least. Given the way that they seemed to raise an eyebrow at the whereabouts of the elusive Golden Share, which seemed to have gone missing somewhere deep within SISU’s  corporate structure and which still hasn’t been absolutely clarified, and their reaction to the messy situation that Portsmouth FC found itself in earlier this year, which resulted in the League intervening to state that it would only deal with the Portsmouth Supporters Trust as the preferred bidder for the club at that time, it might have been expected that the League would have been robust in its response to a short period in administration which seems to have run to the absolute contrary to the spirit of its own rules on that particular subject. Instead, all they could muster was this: At its meeting yesterday, the Board of The Football League noted the decision of the administrator to accept a bid from Otium Holdings for the assets of Coventry City Football Club Limited (in administration). The League will now work with the administrator and the proposed purchaser with regards to the fulfilment of the requirements of The League’s insolvency policy. This response, which might be described as either “cautious” or “cowardly”, depending on your perspective, doesn’t seem to have dampened the flames of anger amongst the club’s supporters. A petition to request that the Football League carries out a thorough investigation into this administration process has now reached almost seven thousand signatures, while the Sky Blues Trust took a coach-load of supporters to the London headquarters of SISU to demonstrate against the removal of the club to ground-share elsewhere whilst a new ground is built. Tim Fisher, the CEO of the club and a director of, amongst others, Coventry City FC Ltd (which was placed into administration towards the end of last season), Coventry City FC (Holdings) Ltd (which wasn’t put into administration towards the end of last season) and Otium Entertainment Group Ltd (which has agreed to purchase the club from the SISU-appointed administrator), has previously claimed that “the boat has sailed” on the club staying at The Ricoh Arena but that any ground-share arrangement will be temporary, with the club returning to a new stadium “in the Coventry area” in two or three years. How it will manage to get back in that space of time, though, remains something of a mystery, and the number of supporters who will actually follow them to Walsall, Birmingham City or whichever other ground some distance from the city of Coventry itself the club ends up playing at. We must refer back to the Football League’s own rules to establish what this might mean: 13.4 Ground sharing will only be approved at the discretion of the Board. The Board will not generally approve any ground-sharing arrangement where the club plays its matches outside the conurbation, as defined by the Board, from which the Club takes its name or with which it is otherwise traditionally associated. The Football Le
27 minutes ago
By Chris Wright Given that they’ve been nothing short of irresistible all tournament, it was pretty much inevitable that Spain would see off Italy in the final of the European U21 Championship yesterday evening – and so it c...
By Chris Wright Given that they’ve been nothing short of irresistible all tournament, it was pretty much inevitable that Spain would see off Italy in the final of the European U21 Championship yesterday evening – and so it came to pass, with La Roja retaining their title courtesy of a convincing 4-2 victory. Barcelona darling Thiago Alcantara stuck away a first-half hat-trick, with Italy’s Ciro Immobile scoring a beautiful 10th-minute dinked consolation to make the score 3-1 to Spain at half-time following a rollicking first 45 minutes, with Isco (pen) and the Azzuri’s Fabio Borini adding a further goal apiece in the second half. By Jove these Spanish lads can play a bit! It’s not like Italy’s U21s are naff side, but they were distinctly second best from the off. Spain’s all-conquering senior legacy looks to be in safe hands for generations to come. Oh joy. Let someone else have a go chaps, it’s rude to hog all the trinkets. Also, word on the wind is that Thiago may have a measly €18million (£15million-ish) release clause at Barca due to him not playing the required percentage of first-team games to contractually bump it up into the stratosphere last season – we can see an orderly queue forming for him this summer if that just so happens to be kosher. Photos… Highlights… (Photos: PA)
27 minutes ago
• Final will be played at Wembley on 17 May 2014• FA responded to pressure from fans and mediaThe FA Cup final has been returned to its historic place at the end of the domestic season, with the FA acknowledging pressure from fans and th...
• Final will be played at Wembley on 17 May 2014• FA responded to pressure from fans and mediaThe FA Cup final has been returned to its historic place at the end of the domestic season, with the FA acknowledging pressure from fans and the media over the timing of the showpiece.In recent seasons, the game has lost some of its gloss. In 2011, Manchester City's match with Stoke began as Manchester United were celebrating their Premier League title win at Blackburn, and over the last two seasons the game has been forced to share the spotlight with a weekend programme of top-flight matches.In May, the euphoria of Wigan beating Manchester City was quickly replaced by the desolation of relegation.However, after the release of the new season's fixtures, the FA confirmed the final will be played on 17 May, a week after the Premier League season has concluded.The FA general secretary Alex Horne said: "We're well aware that fans and media have been calling for The FA Cup Final to have a day to itself and we're delighted that this is going to happen for 2014."The FA has also been criticised for the early evening kick-offs over the past two seasons, particularly this year, when both competing clubs were from the north-west and were unable to get trains home. There has been no word whether this trend will continue.However, with the latest instalment of the world's oldest cup competition due to begin on 17 August with the extra preliminary round, Horne feels a step in the right direction has been taken."It's the first time we've managed to get the FA Cup final a stand-alone date since Chelsea v Portsmouth in 2010," he said."There have been various reasons for that, not least the two Champions League finals at Wembley Stadium which have been fantastic occasions and required huge resources and a massive build up time behind the scenes."FA CupWembley stadiumThe FAguardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
31 minutes ago
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Hull City (Home) 24/08/2013 15:00 Manchester United (Away) 31/08/2013 15:00 Aston Villa (Home) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Everton (Away) 21/09/2013 15:00 Fulham (Home) 28/09/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (Away) Oct...
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Hull City (Home) 24/08/2013 15:00 Manchester United (Away) 31/08/2013 15:00 Aston Villa (Home) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Everton (Away) 21/09/2013 15:00 Fulham (Home) 28/09/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (Away) October 05/10/2013 15:00 Norwich City (Away) 19/10/2013 15:00 Cardiff City (Home) 26/10/2013 15:00 Manchester City (Home) November 02/11/2013 15:00 Newcastle United (Away) 09/11/2013 15:00 West [...]
37 minutes ago
August 17/08/2013 15:00 West Ham United (Away) 24/08/2013 15:00 Manchester City (Home) 31/08/2013 15:00 Everton (Home) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Hull City (Away) 21/09/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (Home) 28/09/2013 15:00 Fulham (Away) O...
August 17/08/2013 15:00 West Ham United (Away) 24/08/2013 15:00 Manchester City (Home) 31/08/2013 15:00 Everton (Home) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Hull City (Away) 21/09/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (Home) 28/09/2013 15:00 Fulham (Away) October 05/10/2013 15:00 Newcastle United (Home) 19/10/2013 15:00 Chelsea (Away) 26/10/2013 15:00 Norwich City (Away) November 02/11/2013 15:00 Swansea City (Home) 09/11/2013 15:00 Aston [...]
43 minutes ago
By Chris Wright The internet is a wonderful thing: one day you’re sourcing and buying weapons-grade enriched uranium on Ebay, the next you’re sat watching footage of a Brazilian World Cup protester in Rio connecting with a sw...
By Chris Wright The internet is a wonderful thing: one day you’re sourcing and buying weapons-grade enriched uranium on Ebay, the next you’re sat watching footage of a Brazilian World Cup protester in Rio connecting with a sweet volley to a police teargas cannister which someone out there has overdubbed with a classic blast of “manic Brazilian commentary”… GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!!! (Video via 101GG)
about 1 hour ago
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Arsenal (Away) 24/08/2013 15:00 Liverpool (Home) 31/08/2013 15:00 Chelsea (Away) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Newcastle United (Home) 21/09/2013 15:00 Norwich City (Away) 28/09/2013 15:00 Manchester City (Home) Octo...
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Arsenal (Away) 24/08/2013 15:00 Liverpool (Home) 31/08/2013 15:00 Chelsea (Away) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Newcastle United (Home) 21/09/2013 15:00 Norwich City (Away) 28/09/2013 15:00 Manchester City (Home) October 05/10/2013 15:00 Hull City (Away) 19/10/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (Home) 26/10/2013 15:00 Everton (Home) November 02/11/2013 15:00 West Ham United (Away) 09/11/2013 15:00 Cardiff City [...]
about 1 hour ago
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Aston Villa (Home) 24/08/2013 15:00 Fulham (Away) 31/08/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (Home) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Sunderland (Away) 21/09/2013 15:00 Stoke City (Home) 28/09/2013 15:00 Swansea City (Away) Octo...
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Aston Villa (Home) 24/08/2013 15:00 Fulham (Away) 31/08/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (Home) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Sunderland (Away) 21/09/2013 15:00 Stoke City (Home) 28/09/2013 15:00 Swansea City (Away) October 05/10/2013 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (Away) 19/10/2013 15:00 Norwich City (Home) 26/10/2013 15:00 Crystal Palace (Away) November 02/11/2013 15:00 Liverpool (Home) 09/11/2013 15:00 Manchester [...]
about 1 hour ago
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Sunderland (Away) 24/08/2013 15:00 Arsenal (Home) 31/08/2013 15:00 Newcastle United (Away) September 14/09/2013 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (Home) 21/09/2013 15:00 Chelsea (Away) 28/09/2013 15:00 Cardiff City (Home...
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Sunderland (Away) 24/08/2013 15:00 Arsenal (Home) 31/08/2013 15:00 Newcastle United (Away) September 14/09/2013 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (Home) 21/09/2013 15:00 Chelsea (Away) 28/09/2013 15:00 Cardiff City (Home) October 05/10/2013 15:00 Stoke City (Home) 19/10/2013 15:00 Crystal Palace (Away) 26/10/2013 15:00 Southampton (Away) November 02/11/2013 15:00 Manchester United (Home) 09/11/2013 15:00 Liverpool (Away) [...]
about 1 hour ago
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Norwich City (Away) 24/08/2013 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (Home) 31/08/2013 15:00 Cardiff City (Away) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Chelsea (Home) 21/09/2013 15:00 West Ham United (Away) 28/09/2013 15:00 Newcastle Un...
August 17/08/2013 15:00 Norwich City (Away) 24/08/2013 15:00 West Bromwich Albion (Home) 31/08/2013 15:00 Cardiff City (Away) September 14/09/2013 15:00 Chelsea (Home) 21/09/2013 15:00 West Ham United (Away) 28/09/2013 15:00 Newcastle United (Home) October 05/10/2013 15:00 Manchester City (Away) 19/10/2013 15:00 Hull City (Home) 26/10/2013 15:00 Aston Villa (Away) November 02/11/2013 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur (Home) [...]
about 1 hour ago