29-09-2022, 18:37
Notwithstanding my apparently nefarious professional career, in general terms I believe very much that openness in communication is to be applauded and encouraged IF there is something constructive to be gained from it and UNLESS there are possible risks in it. In this case, I happen to think that both of those caveats apply.
In the case of the Birmingham City / Tshimanga business, for example, I am convinced that the club could and should have been far more communicative than they were and really can`t understand why they weren`t. If there is a valid reason (commercial sensitivity, for instance; I`ve had plenty of experience of that) I think they should have said so. In that particular case, I suspect we`ll never know the full story – which does indeed create a vacuum to be filled by anyone with a theory, no matter how crazy.
For the reasons I`ve already given, however, I think that both this and the Hallam Hope case are different. Some people will undoubtedly come up with their own weird and wacky theories; the abundance of blatantly bonkers conspiracy theories going around about virtually anything and everything these days is testament to that. As I`ve already said, though, when and if they go to court these will either be proven to be correct (highly unlikely in most cases, I`d have thought) or completely blown out of the water. All we have to do to find out is to wait a while. If it turns out that the club does have something to hide, that will also come out and somebody will almost certainly have to pay the price.
It`s not a question of hope that we won`t have to deal with either case; it`s a fact. The police, the CPS and the courts are going to have to deal with them. The club suspended pending investigation and then sacked JR but it`s not down to us to prosecute him. Oldham took the Hallam Hope business out of our hands the moment they referred it to the police. I`m not suggesting for a second that they weren`t within their rights or were wrong to do that but the moment they did the matter was completely out of our hands and the statement that the club made was 100% appropriate, to my thinking.
In the case of the Birmingham City / Tshimanga business, for example, I am convinced that the club could and should have been far more communicative than they were and really can`t understand why they weren`t. If there is a valid reason (commercial sensitivity, for instance; I`ve had plenty of experience of that) I think they should have said so. In that particular case, I suspect we`ll never know the full story – which does indeed create a vacuum to be filled by anyone with a theory, no matter how crazy.
For the reasons I`ve already given, however, I think that both this and the Hallam Hope case are different. Some people will undoubtedly come up with their own weird and wacky theories; the abundance of blatantly bonkers conspiracy theories going around about virtually anything and everything these days is testament to that. As I`ve already said, though, when and if they go to court these will either be proven to be correct (highly unlikely in most cases, I`d have thought) or completely blown out of the water. All we have to do to find out is to wait a while. If it turns out that the club does have something to hide, that will also come out and somebody will almost certainly have to pay the price.
It`s not a question of hope that we won`t have to deal with either case; it`s a fact. The police, the CPS and the courts are going to have to deal with them. The club suspended pending investigation and then sacked JR but it`s not down to us to prosecute him. Oldham took the Hallam Hope business out of our hands the moment they referred it to the police. I`m not suggesting for a second that they weren`t within their rights or were wrong to do that but the moment they did the matter was completely out of our hands and the statement that the club made was 100% appropriate, to my thinking.