Well there we have it, not guilty. My thoughts are with John during what has undoubtedly been a very tough time for him but once again football has been dragged through the mud as professional footballers make scurrilous and unfounded racism claims against fellow professionals. Still waiting with bated breath for Rio's views on the whole saga

He admitted to using racial terms & got away with it.

Should be the end of it now that he's been found not guilty.

Unfortunately though this is something that's going to be hanging over both himself and the game for the next while.

Be interesting to see whether Rio or Anton offer to shake his hand next time they meet.

Sky are already talking about him looking for the captaincy back.

Considering how well Gerrard played at the Euro's, I'd be inclined to leave it with him, I'd also consider Gerrard more important to the England team than Terry so he should continue on in the role. The FA should stay out of it and leave it with Hodgson, only fair that the manager remains in control of something like this.

'He admitted to using racial terms & got away with it.'

He didn't get away with anything, a magistrate (who is far more qualified than we are) heard the evidence and found him not guilty. It's as simple as that. It's all about context and whether offence was meant. This decision certainly puts other alleged incidents of racism back in the spotlight

Its seems Teflon Terry is untouchable first a team mates wife/Girlfriend then a Racial abuse charge what next for Teflon Terry? What a great role model for future young boys who wish to grow up and a be a professional footballer !.

Guilty, Not guilty - It doesn't really matter to some, because when you've got it in your head you don't like someone normal ethics and morals go out the window.

To be perfectly honest, even if he did say it - in the tone and manner Ferdinand said, what happens on the pitch stays on the pitch. I can tell you now I've had far worse said to me in game by members of Tyrone's county panel and others in recent history and got on with it. That's not to say they did not get the same right back.

Well this doesn't rule out the possibility of the FA taking action. The judge did say he deffinitely used racist language and while in a court of law the majistrate would take in to account mitigating circumstances (as if it happened on the street and Anoton had something to him first), but the FA can do him for it as it's gross misconduct and if they dont, and i'd be surprised if they dont, then I agree it's unfair on suarez.

GetOverTheBar
County: Tyrone
Posts: 435

1216789 Guilty, Not guilty - It doesn't really matter to some, because when you've got it in your head you don't like someone normal ethics and morals go out the window.

To be perfectly honest, even if he did say it - in the tone and manner Ferdinand said, what happens on the pitch stays on the pitch. I can tell you now I've had far worse said to me in game by members of Tyrone's county panel and others in recent history and got on with it. That's not to say they did not get the same right back


Couldn't agree less. You can't use racist language ever and it can't be tolerated, i'm sorry for what you've endured in the county of tyrone, but racism has to be abolished from the game, no from sport, no from civilasation. Unless it's racist abuse then I can't imagine what could be worse that you had to endure up there - a knee capping?

Pedrito, I don't condone that kind of language whatsoever, but in reality, has anyone, no matter what context not used Racist/Sectarian/whatever hat you want to put on it language? Truthfully I don't think anyone can, I'm not defending Terry, nor do I really want to get into what would be an insurmountable task. But I'm just saying absolutely everyone has at some point in their lives I would say - I include jokes in this too, because they are indeed Racist.

"sticks and stone can break my bones, but names can never hurt me." This is all so ridiculous, cannot believe we are having a trial over this, wasting tax payers money. I have had worse said to me during pub league soccer games. Throughout the history of competitive sports, players say all sorts of insulting things about each other - about how they look, about where they are from, about how their respective mother's gets around, so what? Then after the game you go have a drink and all is forgotten.. But putting each other on trial for calling each others names? Come on. Man up.

Getover, while I agree that most people carry certain prejudices, I don't think we're innately racist (actually we probably are on a primal, tribal-level), look at kids for example they rarely see colour in other kids. But anyway, look i know you're not condoning it, but i do think you're missing the point a bit, yes words don't mean anything, but if one professional idolised by millions says it to another one and gets away with it, it sends out the wrong message and it's not too far a step from saying something racist and carrying out a racist attack - racism starts with words, that's where you nip it in the bud.

I'd like to think I've never said anything racist.

psloyan
County: Mayo
Posts: 106

1216834 "sticks and stone can break my bones, but names can never hurt me." This is all so ridiculous, cannot believe we are having a trial over this, wasting tax payers money. I have had worse said to me during pub league soccer games. Throughout the history of competitive sports, players say all sorts of insulting things about each other - about how they look, about where they are from, about how their respective mother's gets around, so what? Then after the game you go have a drink and all is forgotten.. But putting each other on trial for calling each others names? Come on. Man up.



It's not a question of manning up. If someone says something racist to you, you've a duty to society to stand up to it, not with violence, which is what they want but through the legal channels available to you - that's manning up, to accept it and get on with it is cowardly, what if Rosa Parks, Malcolm X and Martin Luther king just accepted it and moved on?

Pedrito
County: Dublin
Posts: 944

It's not a question of manning up. If someone says something racist to you, you've a duty to society to stand up to it, not with violence, which is what they want but through the legal channels available to you - that's manning up, to accept it and get on with it is cowardly, what if Rosa Parks, Malcolm X and Martin Luther king just accepted it and moved on?

Unfortunately some people seem to think that if someone says something racist to you while you're standing on a bit of grass with four white lines around it then it's ok.

Haven't been following the case in great depth but the judge seemed to be intimating that Terry was just repeating what had been said to him. Then again soon after the match Terry denied saying anything of the sort, only to seemingly base his evidence around the fact that what he indeed had said was said and in a questioning manner.

The real problem now for the FA is how to deal with this in light of how they punished Suarez. It would be difficult to ban him after he has been cleared by a court. Although at the same time the FA would require a lower burden of proof whereas the court would have needed it to be proved beyond reasonable doubt.

Fair play to you Pedrito, I cannot say I haven't said anything like that before. But to paraphrase Arsene Wenger when this all started, he said something along the lines of 'on the pitch, your emotions are high, if you say something racist it does not necessarily mean you are that'. Terry's been cleared, that should be the end of it. I don't think the FA can do anything to be honest once he's been cleared by a magistrate - It would just be fuel for Chelsea next season.

Since Terry has now been found innocent - I think he's handled the whole situation admirably. Like the man or not he's got something about him to go out and take that every single weekend.

dhorse
County: Laois
Posts: 10562

1212855 DUB1
County: Dublin
Posts: 3398

1212715 This trial gets under way now and allthough think it was unbelievable the way it was put back till after the euro,s. I hope see john terry get everything he deserve,s...

Whatever he gets it will be deserved, that's the way justice takes it's course

He got away with it is that justice...

Its all kicking off now. I see rio was tweeting saying it was wrong that ashley cole to support terry...

if_in_doubt
County: Kildare
Posts: 954

1216875
Pedrito
County: Dublin
Posts: 944

It's not a question of manning up. If someone says something racist to you, you've a duty to society to stand up to it, not with violence, which is what they want but through the legal channels available to you - that's manning up, to accept it and get on with it is cowardly, what if Rosa Parks, Malcolm X and Martin Luther king just accepted it and moved on?

Unfortunately some people seem to think that if someone says something racist to you while you're standing on a bit of grass with four white lines around it then it's ok.

Haven't been following the case in great depth but the judge seemed to be intimating that Terry was just repeating what had been said to him. Then again soon after the match Terry denied saying anything of the sort, only to seemingly base his evidence around the fact that what he indeed had said was said and in a questioning manner.

The real problem now for the FA is how to deal with this in light of how they punished Suarez. It would be difficult to ban him after he has been cleared by a court. Although at the same time the FA would require a lower burden of proof whereas the court would have needed it to be proved beyond reasonable doubt.


Suarez will feal sick if terry is not charged by the fa, he is still in breach of football rules.

DUB1, fortunately just because you want someone to be found guilty - Does not mean they are.

What is Rio at? The best thing is for this whole debacle to be put to bed and he's tweeting Ashley Cole is a 'Choc Ice'. Surely this is Racist? Can...Worms, everywhere.

Both Rio and Cole are of mixed race so 'racism' hard to prove. It's a bit like an Irishman telling an Irish joke, probably not racist

Mores the point, why is Rio saying this when he is of mixed race? It's like he's taken the 'Black' stance and dismissed his 'White-ness' which of course is 50% of him!! Whatever way you look at this he's a silly boy!

Don't think choc-ice is a reference to being mixed-race, I believe it's an epithet for white on the inside, a race traitor as it were - a black man with white tendencies, what Americans call an uncle tom, or the black/white version of west-brit, you can be referenced that way no matter how African your lineage.

Rio feels his brother was racially abused and the perpetrator got away with it, I think he's entitled to vent spleen.

The thing is Terry has a strong defence, lip-readers can't prove it wasn't an interrogative and he only said it once. Suarez repeated a racial slur at least 5 time (5 proven times, Evra reckons it was more) and did so even after it was clearly winding Evra up so he could have no such defence, so I wouldn't be surprised if Terry got less of a punishment. There's probably an argument for saying footballers sometimes can't control their tongue in the heat of battle, but once you repeat it over and over, that argument is null and void. There's also an argument for not having such in language cocked-n-loaded in your vocabulary anyway and if it spills to the surface, you deserve punishment.