Roly-Poly Goalie has had his chips as FA probe pie bet ‘fix’
SUTTON United reserve goalkeeper Wayne Shaw was at the centre of a corruption probe last night – for scoffing a pie during his team’s FA Cup clash with Arsenal.
The 23st stopper – nicknamed the Roly-Poly Goalie – had the heat turned up on him after it emerged a bookmaker had offered odds of 8-1 he would be filmed eating one during Monday’s match.
Yesterday veteran player Shaw, 46, quit the south London nonleague club in tears after denying breaking betting rules, saying it had only been “a bit of banter”.
But the Football Association and Gambling Commission announced investigations into the incident – already dubbed “Pie-Gate” – during Sutton’s 2-0 defeat by the Premier League giants.
Millions of viewers watching the fifth-round game live on BBC One saw Shaw chomping on the meat and potato snack as he stood beside the substitutes’ bench.
It happened in the 82nd minute when Sutton had already used their three allowed subs – meaning Shaw could not get on the pitch.
Character
He landed in hot water when he admitted he knew that Sun Bets, which was sponsoring the match, was offering the pie wager.
The bookie later tweeted it had paid out a “five-figure sum” on the eating bet.
Shaw, who captured the public’s imagination as a larger-than-life character during Sutton’s fairytale cup run, denied wrongdoing.
He said: “This is just a bit of fun and me being hungry. A few of the lads said earlier, ‘What’s going on with the 8-1 about eating a pie?’
“I said, ‘I don’t know. I have eaten nothing all day so I might give it a go later on’.
“As I say Sun Bets had me at 8-1 to eat a pie. I thought I would give them a bit of banter and let’s do it.
“I went and got it at half-time from the kitchen, I had it all prepared and ready to go. It was meat and potato.”
Shaw, who was also part of the club’s coaching team, insisted no Sutton player had placed bets.
He added: “Obviously we are not allowed to bet. I think a few of the mates and a few of the fans. It was just a bit of banter and something to make the occasion as well.”
An FA spokesman said: “We are investigating to establish whether there has been any breach of the FA rules relating to betting.” And Gambling Commission enforcement director Richard Watson added: “Integrity in sport is not a joke and we have to establish exactly what happened.”
Last night Sutton manager Paul Doswell said the goalkeeper had agreed to resign from the club after “a genuine mistake”.
Mr Doswell said: “He’s absolutely devastated – tears down the phone. There’s no joy and nothing good coming out of this situation, particularly for him. It was an honest error but one that’s had quite sad ramifications.”
The manager added that he also felt sorry for his other players as it had “taken the gloss off” their performance in the FA Cup.