At Reading, we have made the mistake of allowing a team of homeless egg-chasers to be tenants at our beautiful football stadium. This is a recurring theme up and down the land at the moment, as the financially troubled public-schoolboy "sport" realises that it's easier to use the superior facilities of a popular pastime than to make any attempt to provide their own.
For the time being, this page will just keep you up-to-date with reasons why we in football should have nothing to do with these Hooray Henry types. I'm not going to look at the sporting reasons why, because those are clear anyway. Instead, I'm going to expose the type of individuals we are dealing with. Really, this campaign should not just be about keeping egg-chasers out of football but out of our society altogether. For space reasons, I shall limit this section to events in the British Isles.
A shamed GP was jailed for nine years today for sexually abusing women patients. David Baillie's catalogue of abuse involved 17 patients over 14 years. The former Scottish Rugby Union doctor and university tutor carried out unnecessary internal examinations on victims. Some were explicitly photographed for "medical training" after consulting the GP. The father of two was struck off as a doctor by the General Medical Council in September last year.
Defence counsel Ruth Anderson QC today said that Baillie's career was ruined. The lawyer added: "He has, to use his own words, left a trail of devastation in his wake." The defence counsel added: "This is a man who has lost his profession and the rewards and status it brought. He has caused humiliation, injury and distress to those to whom he owed such a duty of care. And he has also breached the great trust placed in him as a member of the medical profession." She said that Baillie had tutored in general practice at Glasgow University and had taken a keen interest in sports medicine. He had an interest with the SRU between 1993 and 2002 and accompanied the Scottish under-21 rugby squad abroad.
1871 verdict - What tremendous judgement the Scottish egg-chasers showed in their choice of physician. Of course the doctor's career had already been ruined by his association with them.
A Welsh international rugby player has appeared in court charged with rape. Wales A forward Hywel Jenkins is accused of raping a 28-year-old woman at a house party in Bridgend on June 3. Jenkins, 26, stood in the dock at Bridgend magistrates court dressed in a grey suit and blue shirt as the charge was read to the court. Jenkins, who recently joined Neath from Swansea, was charged on June 7. The back row forward was released on conditional bail to appear at Cardiff Crown Court on June 19. The conditions of Jenkins's bail include not interfering with prosecution witnesses, not entering Bridgend town centre apart from to make court appearances, and residing at his home address of Glanmor Road, Swansea.
1871 verdict - Interesting that the courts were so concerned about the accused interfering with witnesses that they felt it necessary to explicitly state it. For the record, the egg-chaser was cleared after the prosecution were unable to gain enough evidence to make a case in court.
... overnight [the Harlequins rugby team] found themselves interviewed by police as part of a murder investigation. In the early hours of Saturday, a receptionist at their city-centre hotel was found dead in the kitchen area of Jury’s Inn. At 7am, police moved in to interview the several hundred guests, the Harlequins players and management among them.
"At the moment our thoughts are with the family,” said John Kingston, the Harlequins coach, before yesterday’s kick-off. "It had no impact on us really. Doors were knocked on, we all spoke to the police, who wanted to know where we were on Friday night and what time we got in."
1871 verdict - A woman lies dead, and the coach says it had no impact on the egg-chasers.......
An airline is considering private prosecution against a rugby team following an air-rage alert. Five members of Fareham Heathens Rugby Club were arrested and cautioned following an incident on board a flight to Southampton Airport at the weekend. They were on a flight back from a match in Guernsey. Cabin crew on the British European service claimed 21 team members became abusive and damaged seats in the plane. Police have said players were sharing a duty-free litre of whisky.
Ian Taylor, general manager of British European Airways, said: "I think the facts of the incident are very plain, the group refused to obey the instructions of the cabin crew. They became disruptive. It must be appreciated that there were also a large number of other passengers on board the flight at the same time. Potentially it could cause them great distress. Therefore we will not tolerate any disruptive activity and we feel totally justified in notifying the police who met the aircraft on arrival in Southampton."
1871 verdict - Just two months after the tragic events of 11th September, a bunch of egg-chasers prove that they have no conscience and no feelings for their fellow-passengers. Arrested and cautioned??? They should have been made to leave the airplane before it landed.
Welsh rugby international Mike Voyle has said he may appeal against a court decision following a road accident which left a student in hospital. The Cardiff RFC second row forward was fined £1,250 with £450 costs and banned from driving for six months after being found guilty of driving without due care and attention, and obstructing police investigating the case.
At an earlier hearing Voyle, 31, of Lisvane in Cardiff, had pleaded guilty to failing to stop at the scene of an accident, failing to report an accident, and driving without insurance. After being sentenced, he said he would be looking to appeal against the decision of the Cardiff magistrates.
The court heard that 19-year-old student David Thomas was in a critical condition for several days after being hit by a Fiat Brava car on a road in Cardiff in February last year. A witness reported seeing Mr Thomas being thrown up in the air "like a rag doll" before hitting a pub sign about 7ft off the ground.
Giving evidence, motorist Richard Hawkins said that Mr Voyle overtook him "doing at least 50mph" shortly before the collision. It was alleged that he then fled the scene and abandoned the car to obstruct the police in their investigation.
The court heard that when police traced Mr Voyle the following day, he said he had left his car parked in Cardiff after the match. It was subsequently found abandoned three miles from the accident scene. Lee Ingham, prosecuting, added: "But when police discovered the car was not where Voyle claimed to have parked it they questioned him again and he admitted dumping it. Mike Voyle deliberately dumped that car to obstruct police in their investigation of this hit-and-run accident. The car was found later with its windscreen shattered and damage to the bodywork."
1871 verdict - A man is in hospital in a critical condition whilst an egg-chaser tries to obstruct the police investigation. And then he has the cheek to try to get his driving licence back. He should be put in jail for a long time.
Serial rapist Graham Rankine is today facing a second life sentence for a brutal sex attack on an Oxford student. Rugby player Rankine had been released from a life sentence for a previous rape when he snatched the 30-year-old woman, a junior fellow at a university college. Yesterday sentence was adjourned at Oxford Crown Court. He has admitted attempted rape, robbery and unlawful wounding, but Stephen Maesner, defending, asked for more details about his past.
Rankine already has four convictions for rape three of his victims were teenagers in a record dating back to 1976, when he was charged with unlawful sexual intercourse after forcing himself on a 13-year-old girl. Released on bail and awaiting sentence, he raped a 16-year-old he met in a pub. Once again he was released on bail, despite police objections. This time, he raped a 17-year-old and was given six months' detention the maximum allowed because of his age. Rankine raped his fourth victim in Southampton in 1984. Magistrates ruled he should be held in custody, but a judge, Mr Justice Hobhouse, granted an application for bail.
Rankine, also an amateur boxer, struck for a fifth time and was jailed for life at Winchester Crown Court in 1986. Four years ago, he was allowed out on licence. After getting a flat in Balfour Road, Blackbird Leys, he found a girlfriend and became one of the top wingers for Oxford Marathons rugby club, now called Oxford Harlequins. Oxford Crown Court heard how he attacked his latest victim after she returned to her college after a night out drinking with friends.
1871 verdict - absolutely typical that the old boy network allows this egg-chaser to commit terrible crimes over and over again. Had he been a footballer, the judges concerned would undoubtedly have treated him differently.
Dr Harold Shipman enhanced his public image with even more work, for the community – he was a parent governor at Longdendale High School, which Sarah and Christopher attended, and he was chairman of the junior committee at Ashton Rugby Club.
1871 verdict - the biggest mass murderer in UK history was an egg-chasing fan. What a shock. Up to 250 deaths on the conscience of the very few fans of this "sport". And the Manchester Evening News are no better - how can being on the committee of a rugby club for the privileged few count as work for the community?
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