Guernsey Press

Hearing decision - does it stack up?

SOMETHING does not quite add up in the result of the commission of inquiry into Ted Teed - as nice a referee you will find - but some might argue a more than a shade lucky still to be refereeing.

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SOMETHING does not quite add up in the result of the commission of inquiry into Ted Teed - as nice a referee you will find - but some might argue a more than a shade lucky still to be refereeing. On Wednesday, Teed was exonerated by a three-man disciplinary hearing commitee comprising Ronald van Beek, Mick Coquelin and Mick Roberts who considered that there was simply no case to answer.

Very strange, that. Very strange...

Trim Morgan, the player at the centre of the whole Teed saga, called the decision 'unbelievable' but added he was not surprised.

That Teed escaped scot-free other than copping a bucket-load of stress is not for me to comment on.

What I find unfathomable, however, is how a Guernsey inquiry can come up with the 'there was no case to answer' line when the Football Association, the august and powerful body which the Guernsey Football Association always follows to the letter, decreed in next to no time that Jerry de la Cour's evidence should necessitate that Morgan's red card and subsequent misconduct charge be dropped like a stone.

The FA, I would guess, knows a good deal more about legal procedures and what and won't stand up in court than the men who sat on the Guernsey commission of inquiry.

Whoever advised the GFA on this matter, certainly had no doubt as to the relevance of de la Cour's evidence.

In advising the GFA to clear Morgan, was the FA by its actions indicating there was a case to answer?

A far more satisfactory conclusion would have been 'no further action will be taken.'

My own reaction to the news of Teed's let-off was that it may be enough to push Morgan over the edge and walk away from the local game.

Already serving a 112-day ban, his Sylvans squad out of the running for any major silverware this season, the inquiry verdict going against him and so much of the football fraternity keen to throw mud at this fine but controversial player would be enough for him to quit.

But, to his credit, he promised to ride the storm.

'I am quite happy at Sylvans,' he said.

'We will see the ban out and move on. That is what we all as a club will focus on. We will come back stronger.'

Fighting talk from a coach who has impressed me greatly in reviving a tired, somewhat dilapidated squad this season.

This team shorn of the Nobes brothers and, for so long, without other key players, has battled and battled without much luck.

The latest indication of their reversal of fortune came in Tuesday's Wheway Cup defeat against North.

To lose out 6-5 on penalties having led 2-0 was cruel, without taking anything away from North's sterling fightback.

Whatever anyone thinks about Morgan's style, they cannot say his team are disorganised and lack spirit.

In this respect, the turnaround at St Peter's this season has been remarkable.

Time and again they have proved they are almost as good as anyone.

On Tuesday, though, they surely contributed to their downfall with their choice and order of spot-kick takers.

Having converted their opening four and needing only Ian Potter to tuck away their fifth to book a place in the final, they lost their way.

Potter, an admirable defender, courageous in the tackle, planted his penalty too straight to beat Paul de Garis and North had a lifeline.

Sylvans' seventh penalty was taken by Matt Warren, who also missed.

What puzzles me is how come Warren, a player who scored a hat-trick in no less a match than the 2003 Island Games final, was not required to take one of the first five penalties?

Equally mystifying is why Tony Vance, as good a deliverer of a football in the Sylvans team, a former semi-professional and a heavy goalscorer over a long career, did not take any of the seven kicks.

Was it a dereliction of duty on his part, or the manager's choice?

Whatever, Sylvans still have much going for them and while undoubtedly North will lift this year's Priaulx championship I would not bet against the westerners making a stiff challenge next summer, especially if Morgan is still at the helm and keeps himself out of trouble.

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