Parry seems so vexed by the problems of his own making
RICK PARRY continues to justify his miserable decision to relegate Tranmere on points per game, even though the indeterminate nature of promotion and relegation continues to be proven, week by week. ‘Whatever formula you come up with, some people are going to be aggrieved,’ insisted Parry. ‘Clubs that have done well out of PPG are ecstatic. Those that haven’t are dismal. But what we did was fair, it was logical.’ No, it wasn’t, because the ecstatic clubs were allowed to vote on a situation to make themselves ecstatic. And the dismal ones? There were never going to be enough of them to counter-block. So Parry sold them out. Tranmere — three points off Wimbledon, with a game in hand — will now be replaced via play-offs by Northampton, who finished seventh in League Two, one point above Port Vale with nine matches of the season remaining. Northampton did not accrue any more than 58 points which last season would have seen them 15th. And we will never know whether they would have got so much as one more in addition. Their play-off form was reasonable — two wins, one defeat — but when the season was suspended, Northampton had lost five of their last seven league games, including at home to Port Vale.
Fair? Logical? It was nothing of the sort. Increasingly, Parry is being found out. In League Two, the EFL are now contesting the punishment given to Macclesfield, who have repeatedly defaulted on wages, because they know the PPG system has relegated the wrong club in Stevenage, whose owner at least meets his commitments. It follows Parry telling a parliamentary committee about the evils of parachute payments — which he created during his time at the Premier League. He seems vexed by problems of his own creation. ‘Parry in bet fury at Wigan’ read one headline. This story concerned the dubious takeover of Wigan and the possibility that one of those involved could have profited financially through a foreign gambling market if the club was placed in administration and relegated. So Parry was furious at the consequences of a takeover his EFL waved through. Some logic. Good job he’s so hot on the fairness.