Club apologise for abuse scandal
At least 23 young players were assaulted at club Report concludes that some turned a blind eye
The first major club report into football’s abuse scandal yesterday delivered a damning verdict on how serial sexual offender Eddie Heath went “unchallenged” at Chelsea over a decade in which at least 23 young players were assaulted.
Heath, who died in 1983 and never faced criminal proceedings, was the club’s chief scout between 1968 and 1979 when subjecting players aged between 10 and 17 to “manipulative” and “systematic” sexual abuse before being sacked by former England striker Sir Geoff Hurst for “footballing reasons”.
Hurst, who declined to be formally interviewed in person for the review, yesterday stressed that he was unaware of abuse allegations concerning Heath before they became public in 2016 and that he dismissed him shortly after being appointed manager as he was not satisfied with his scouting work.
An independent 2½-year investigation was led by Charles Geekie GQ, who concluded that, while the evidence did not show that other adults had actual knowledge of the serious acts of abuse, others would have been aware of and observed Heath’s “lewd” behaviour.
“The unhappy reality is that some must have seen things and turned a blind eye to what they saw,” said Geekie.
There is particular criticism for Dario Gradi, who was then assistant coach, after a complaint was made to him about Heath that, according to Geekie, became a lost opportunity “to prevent Mr Heath from going on to abuse others”.
As well as Heath, the Chelsea investigation also revealed complaints of sexual abuse relating to a now deceased “driver and referee” who was also working at the club in the mid-seventies. These allegations were considered “credible” by Geekie, who led a 17-strong legal team and conducted 139 interviews.
A separate review into allegations of racial abuse at Chelsea from 1982 until the late Nineties, conducted by the charity Barnardo’s, yesterday also concluded that “black players were subjected to a daily tirade of racial abuse”.
The club’s board apologised “unreservedly for the terrible past experiences of some of our former players” and said that they wanted to “shine a bright light in the dark corners of the club’s history…to protect the players of the future”.
Forty players came forward to give evidence across the two reviews and 17 of those have since held face-to-face meetings with Chelsea chairman Bruce Buck, who was brought to tears on several occasions.
There have also been private apologies and ongoing support is being provided to any affected player or family member. Some had never previously been back to Stamford Bridge, while others asked to see how the current safeguarding procedures worked for the academy players at the club’s Cobham training base.
Forty individuals have made compensation claims and, while some are already settled, it is understood the majority are still being handled by the club’s insurers.
After some dissatisfaction at the
A separate Barnardo’s review concluded that ‘black players [at Chelsea] were subjected to a daily tirade of racial abuse’
process, amid concern that lawyers could be receiving more in fees than the compensation for victims, the Football Association and Professional Footballers’ Association have funded a “survivor advocate” to support players through the claims process. Chelsea have also promised not to suggest non-disclosure agreements after The Daily Telegraph previously revealed how Gary Johnson received £50,000 as part of an arrangement to keep quiet about being abused by Heath.
That was shortly before the full scale of the scandal became evident in 2016 following Andy Woodward’s revelations about being sexually abused at Crewe Alexandra by Barry Bennell.
Hundreds of sexual abuse victims then came forward from across Britain and, as well as the Chelsea review, investigations are being held into offences at clubs including Manchester City, Southampton and Crewe.
Heath, who was known by some players as “nightmare Eddie”, is described by witnesses as having been “untouchable” amid a culture of silence that made children too scared or embarrassed to come forward. Most of the witnesses could recall Heath using sexual innuendo and behaving inappropriately but it was reported that he took care that his most serious sexual assaults, which included rape, took place in private. There were 15 witnesses who were subjected to “serious and unambiguous sexual assaults”.
The profound and lasting impact of Heath’s abuse is detailed in the report, with one player turning to drugs, going to prison and still unable to show affection to his children or grandchildren. “Others
must have known or been suspicious of what he was doing,” said one witness.
The review team wished to interview Hurst and explore further why Heath was sacked, despite reports that he was “a good and effective scout” but the World Cup winner said there was nothing to add to an earlier telephone statement. In that, he stressed that he “did not think that he was doing a good enough job”. He said yesterday that he saw no reason to meet in person to repeat the same facts.
Chelsea yesterday said that “it is evident from the review that Heath was a dangerous and prolific child abuser” whose “conduct was beyond reprehensible”. In 2017, Chelsea appointed Barnardo’s to review their current safeguarding practices and all of their recommendations are being implemented.
There is no suggestion that the board at the time of the abuse was aware it was taking place.