Bradford given unusual reprieve

After fielding an ineligible against Brentford player Bradford City have been reinstated into the FA Cup.  The question is: why?

Two weeks ago the Bantams took on Uwe Rosler’s side in the second round of the oldest football competition in the world.  The match finished as a 1-1 draw but, after on-loan Newcastle United defender Curtis Good was ruled to have not been registered in time to play, Bradford were expelled from the cup and Brentford were automatically sent through to the third round.

The young defender played the full 90 minutes for Phil Parkinson’s side, with the club claiming that there had been a genuine error and there was no intention to go against the rules.  Unfortunately, though, the fact of the matter is that Bradford did break the laws of the game and the punishment they were given was the only option. 

The club admitted that they were not expecting anything to come of their appeal, yet the FA did indeed retract the expulsion and gave them a £1000 fine instead.  In doing so, the FA have set a precedent they will now be forced to follow in future cases.  Ineligibility of players caused Bury and Droylsden to be kicked out of the cup in 2006 and 2008 respectively, but both clubs lost their appeals.  What was the difference between these appeals and Bradford’s?

Nobody wants to see teams getting kicked out of competitions.  That’s not what football is about and it is sad when such situations do occur.  But, at the end of the day, if something happens that is not in accordance with the rules enforced to maintain the beautiful game, the FA cannot just turn a blind eye or make exceptions.  Players who are found to have consumed illegal substances can not be excused simply because they claim to have made a mistake.  Such was the case for Kolo Toure in 2011, who was banned from football for six months despite explaining that he had taken some of his wife’s water pills in attempt to keep weight off.  Whether Toure knew he could get into trouble for taking them could be debated all day, but the simple fact that he took them is the one that matters.

Bradford deserve huge credit for pulling off a massive upset against Arsenal in the Capital One Cup on Tuesday, but they can consider themselves very lucky to have another chance at FA Cup glory.

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