The EFL has released a written statement explaining why Southampton were kicked out of the play-offs following the Spygate scandal in which they admitted to spying on Middlesbrough.
Southampton were kicked out of the play-off final due to ‘Spygate’ (Image: Robin Jones/Getty Images)
The EFL has issued a scathing review of Southampton’s tactics during the Spygate controversy, ruling that Saints manager Tonda Eckert had approved an “artificial and categorical scheme” to break league rules and gain an unfair advantage ahead of the two clubs’ play-off clash.
The independent disciplinary panel that adjudicated Southampton’s breach of EFL regulations has published the full written reasons behind the decision to exclude Saints from the play-offs following their “deplorable” conduct. Eckert’s side were expelled from the competition ahead of the final against Hull and given a four-point deduction from next season after admitting spying on Middlesbrough as well as two other teams during the season.
It has emerged that Southampton have faced further disciplinary action for forcing young staff to undertake espionage duties. The staff said they were under pressure to do so even though they believed it was “morally wrong”.
In its decision, the committee outlined the reasons why the Saints were expelled from the playoff finals. Crucially, the prize money available for success in the play-offs played an important role, ensuring that, in their view, sporting sanctions were necessary.
While a mid-season point deduction could mean the team deemed the offense ‘worth the risk’, a financial penalty was considered to have little meaning given the wealth available for promotion to the Premier League.
“We concluded that there was a detailed and determined top-down plan on the part of the defendant (Southampton) to gain a competitive advantage in a truly important competition by deliberately attending the opponent’s training ground for the purpose of obtaining tactical and selection information,” the commission said.
read more: Spygate takes new twist as Millwall and Wrexham ‘consider legal action’ against Southamptonread more: Middlesbrough manager ‘knows more’ about Spygate as he hands down disciplinary verdict against Southampton
“This was much more than an innocent operation and was a particularly deplorable practice in which junior staff were used to carry out clandestine observations and analysis of footage and observations.”
Important deliberations can be found below.
“37. We consider that the particularly vexing feature that distinguishes Charges 1 and 2 from the other charges is that the Defendants were willing to commit acts that contravened Rule 127 in a competition that is one of the most prestigious and important competitions in English football. This has not only reputational importance, but also has significant financial implications and benefits for the club if it succeeds in the competition and gains promotion to the Premier League.”
“38. The integrity of the playoff competition has been seriously violated and the defendant’s actions amount to a deliberate attempt to obtain an unfair advantage. Therefore, charges 1 and 2 are subject to more serious sanctions, which in this case result in expulsion from the competition.”
William Salt (centre, back) was also part of the photo as he celebrated Tonda Eckert winning the EFL Manager of the Month award for February (Image: Southampton FC)
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“We have considered whether a lesser sanction is possible or appropriate, while still achieving the purpose of the rule that was violated. If this competition were to take place during the regular season, there could be point deductions or other sanctions that would accomplish the purpose of the rule by stripping the sport of its benefits and making it an activity not worth the risk. Such a position is not possible in the playoffs.”
“Regular season point deductions may still be worth the risk if they increase the chances of promotion. The financial penalties proposed by the defendants would not be effective at this stage of the competition as the financial rewards offered to teams promoted to the Premier League through the play-offs would make any penalties moot. Conversely, this could act as an incentive for clubs to pay fines for breaching regulation 127 in order to improve their chances of promotion.”
“39. As far as the remaining charges are concerned, we took a starting point of 3 points for each case. As indicated above, this level of sanction achieves the purpose of the Rule, as it effectively makes a breach of Rule 127 a zero-sum game. The 6 point deduction was reduced to 4 points to reflect available mitigating measures, including the defendant’s acceptance of the charge, his cooperation (although it is not accepted that this was disqualified), and his suggestions.” OU Cases and IT Providing information related to the incident (although we acknowledge that they were informed in the first letter of 8 May that the EFL was investigating another incident, so these permits were not entirely unauthorized). We did not believe that additional economic sanctions were necessary.
“40. In addition to sporting sanctions, disciplinary action is considered appropriate in this case because of the manner in which junior staff were pressured to carry out activities that they felt were at least morally wrong. Such staff were in a vulnerable position with no job security and had limited ability to oppose or resist instructions given to them.”
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