United brawl boosts call for tunnel vision
THE tunnel bust-up after the Manchester derby at Old Trafford is sure to increase fans’ appetite for a close-up view of any future incidents.
Tunnel clubs, which offer the possibility of seeing such action off the pitch, are in vogue as a premium corporate hospitality opportunity for Premier League clubs.
Manchester City’s hugely popular new tunnel club has a one-way glass wall, though if the brawl had happened at the Etihad Stadium in a comparable area, it would have been out of view.
Spurs are advertising a similar club in their new stadium, opening next year, for a whopping £9,500 a season plus a one- off £15,000 membership. Crystal Palace’s redevelopment at Selhurst Park will also allow the corporate crowd to look into the tunnel for a high price.
Surprisingly, neither the Premier League nor the FA have a view on tunnel clubs in the light of the Old Trafford brawl. Both authorities are leaving it to the clubs to manage their stadiums in an ‘appropriate’ manner.
has emerged that the reason England’s cricketers returned to the Avenue pub in Perth — scene of the Jonny Bairstow headbutting incident — for their beer-drenching night, was that it was one of the few Perth hostelries that had been vetted by security chief Reg Dickason. Surely it should have been crossed off Dickason’s list after the Bairstow debacle. The breakdown in discipline on the Ashes tour has occurred despite all the ECB high command, as well as a number of country cricket chiefs, being in Australia for the first two Tests. Their presence prompts the question of why more has not been done to restore order. ECB chairman Colin Graves is understood to be spending the entire tour in Australia.
THE presence of Stoke chairman Peter Coates on Tony Pulis’s table at the League Managers’ Association’s president’s dinner last week may have given the impression that the veteran boss was planning for the future — especially with Stoke struggling and Mark Hughes said to have two games to save his job. But Pulis (above), who was feted at the dinner for having joined the list of managers who have been in charge for 1,000 games, had invited a large number people who have helped him during his long career, including Coates.
governance laws should prevent overbearing ECB president Giles Clarke from achieving one of his great ambitions — handing over the World Cup in 2020 after the final at Lord’s. Clarke should stand down in 2018 having served the 12-year limit as a board member. But although the ECB are working through their governance code with Sport England — Clarke’s position would be blatantly non-compliant — his situation is complicated by the presidency having no fixed tenure. Hopefully the strong board opposition to Clarke carrying on will see him removed at the May AGM, when directorial changes are made.