As a man and a player, John Terry seems unable to keep himself out of the headlines. This week, another damning story fell on the Chelsea defender as he was given a four-match ban and £220,000 fine for allegedly directing racial abuse towards a fellow professional during a match. The hearing that delivered this verdict followed an announcement by Terry that he was retiring from international football amid beliefs there was a vendetta against him from The FA. All in all, the obvious conclusions that can be drawn are that the man has continued to reinforce his despicable nature as a person to the public whilst also ridding the country of arguably the best centre-back it currently possesses. Just another major chapter in his life then...!
So I guess the first issue that has to be addressed is that Terry has been accused and found guilty of being racist. This is by an FA hearing that has been held nearly a year after the incident occurred. Furthermore, it is a hearing that was called after the Chelsea captain was found not guilty in a court of law. This is why the case has developed with interest. How can an authority, which is clearly lower down the pecking order, charge somebody of a crime that they have already been acquitted from? You can therefore understand Terry’s frustration and sense of injustice regarding the situation. The reason why The FA could continue with the proceedings is because the courts had to decide unequivocally that Terry had used racist language in an insulting manner, i.e. there was intent, whereas they just had to conclude whether racial words were aimed at Ferdinand. The need for proof is lower. Whether this is right or wrong is a different point entirely. You may argue that The FA felt that by going ahead with its charges that they would be able to end this saga once and for all, however, in doing so, they have now tainted the man’s reputation further (if that was possible) by terming him a racist, which although may not be entirely true based on the charge and verdict, is the assumption Joe Public will make.
Terry himself admitted on both occasions to using the word “black”, as well as swearing at Anton Ferdinand, the victim in the case, but argued he was only repeating words he thought Ferdinand had accused him of saying. However, with Terry’s previous misdemeanours and controversies in life, you would have to say the hearing’s committee must have instantly held doubt as to the plausibility of this argument. Yet, the Chelsea stalwart has received an interesting punishment. A four match ban is quite small when you consider a straight red for most cases on the pitch leads to a three match suspension; whereas the £220,000 fine, although only a week or two’s wages for Terry, is a huge sum of money. When you contrast it to what Luis Suarez was dealt with last year (an eight match ban and £40,000 fine) it makes no logical sense, and until the written verdict is revealed, I guess not possible to understand. Some may argue that the verdict is actually weak and lenient, maybe with Terry’s stature as one of the key members of both England and the Premier League aiding him. Maybe, the fact he is English, and The FA cannot comprehend that they have racist players amongst their leagues, including one who has been permanent national captain twice in his career, assisted him. Or maybe the court’s decision affected their judgement. Whatever, there is a clear contrast for two guilty verdicts which certainly proves that The FA look at each case on its own merits though, as they have ignored all precedents previously set!
What the situation has led to is Terry’s international retirement. Clearly irked by the behaviour The FA have adopted has made him unable to represent the body on the playing field. Now this has led to delirious cries by some, predominantly the Terry-haters, of which there are many after his controversial past. However, the Chelsea man, despite being a Class A idiot at times has proven time and time again that he is a magnificent defender, who will put everything on the line to help stop his team losing. Yes, he is evidently no longer at his prime, but he is certainly playing at a higher level than Rio Ferdinand nowadays (anyone who saw Manchester United against Tottenham last night should be able to testify to that) and is arguably the best of an English bunch who are relatively inexperienced on the international stage. I personally have always had reservations regarding Lescott (although his past two seasons have been an improvement) and he is already 30. Jagielka had a nightmare performance against Ukraine last month, whilst Cahill seems to be in-out-in-out both for Chelsea and England. The likes of Smalling, Jones and Caulker are either injured or not representing their clubs regularly, which leads us to now be looking at the England centre-back position with some concern in my opinion. Terry was a leader, and obviously rallied the players in the dressing room as well. He was a key figure in the set-up and one that will be tough to replace.
The situation though has always been more than the John Terry show. It is about how the game deals with discrimination and I think there are still many questions to be asked regarding it, particularly with two contrasting punishments in the space of 12 months. Terry played yesterday for Chelsea against Arsenal for the final time before his ban, which suggests the club are backing their club captain all the way, despite the player appearing to be losing sponsorship deals at an incredible rate. The man’s reputation is now in tatters and will never be rectified, although expect to see an appeal emerge. If it does, then the case will be brought up once again and we will be seeing the spotlight back on the game. If the appeal fails, you have to hope that a greater sentence is imposed as the game is being damaged further and further the more this event is analysed. A decision needs to be made; by Terry, by Chelsea, and by The FA. Criteria need to start being laid down and codes of conduct and laws abided by because otherwise the game’s reputation and name will be ruined. If we are going to kick racism out of football, then let us be heavy-handed on those found guilty of such disgusting behaviour.
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