Air Of Inequity And Impropriety With Mills Suspension

Thursday 28th January, 1999

Bradford City’s One Million Pound Striker Lee Mills will miss the televised Yorkshire derby with Sheffield United after he was handed a one match ban by the Football Association following his "Improper Remarks" to a linesman following the 2-1 defeat at Huddersfield.

The fact that Mills’ suspension was sent down by a committee that in a few weeks could be working under the Chairman of fellow promotion hopefuls Ipswich Town suggests impropriety.

Ipswich Chairman David Sheepshanks hopes to be Graham Kelly’s successor at the Football Association and while there is no suggestion that Mr. Sheepshanks had a direct involvement in setting the punishment for Mills the fact that the committee dealing with the matter may be working under Sheepshanks’ within the next few weeks suggests impropriety and raises questions over the continued involvement of F.A. officials with member clubs.

The nature of the punishment, a one game ban that effects the entire team for a personal offence is severe. Mills and the Linesman’s conversation was conducted between themselves, indeed, other players attempted to prevent the exchange. To punish the team as opposed to singling out the player, with a fine for example, is peculiar. Within the context of the fixture, which in recent years saw a man given only a yellow card for maliciously and seriously wounding one of the opposing, this punishment is a travesty.

The punishment marks a question against the Ipswich Chairman’s influence over competitors. It is surely not proper to have a vested interest in one club while attempting to take control of a body that has the ability to deal out subjective punishment over one of it’s rivals. A team has the obligation to send out it’s best team every game, indeed clubs have been fined for fielding weak sides ahead of major matches. The F.A. have taken that obligation from City when they had the option to fine the player. Surely the appearance that a club’s rivals can have a hand in such a decision should be avoided. The fact that in this situation it has been is incongruous.

Meanwhile, defender Darren Moore, who was harshly yellow carded for a foul on Temuri Ketsbaia in City’s 3-0 defeat at the hands of Newcastle, will miss the game at home to Watford on February 6 after he picked up his fifth booking of the season.

Overall City’s disciplinary record has been exemplary this season with the team only getting around one booking per game and, so far, no red card offences (Mills and O’Brien both being sent off for receiving two yellow cards).

Have City Been Stitched Up? Your opinions to MichaelWood@Iname.com