Wiley: Wants to put Fergie feud behind him
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Wiley wants an end to Ferguson feud
Alan Wiley will not sue Sir Alex Ferguson for defamation but has expressed his "bitter disappointment" with the Scot's attack on his fitness.
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Ferguson was given a four-match touchline ban, two of them suspended, and a £20,000 fine by the FA for saying Wiley "just wasn't fit enough" to officiate in United's 2-2 draw with Sunderland in October.
The United manager has apologised for his remarks and referees' union Prospect confirmed Wiley would not be pursuing a case for defamation against Ferguson.
Wiley said: "Although I was bitterly disappointed about the personal attack on me I want to put this behind me and continue to concentrate on my refereeing."
Prospect has also written to the FA to seek greater support for referees and calling for stronger action if there are similar attacks in the future.
Prospect national secretary Alan Leighton said: "Unwarranted and untrue attacks on referees damage the hard-earned reputation of our members, call into question their integrity and damage the image of the game by suggesting that the referees are incapable of doing their job.
"Referees understand and accept that their decisions will be questioned, but personal attacks are unacceptable."
Leighton also defended Prospect against criticism that it had chose this case to become very publicly involved.
He added: "Prospect adopted a policy when we started representing referees four years ago that we would not make public comment on every criticism made by ex-referees or managers.
"The seriousness of the recent attack forced the union to depart from that policy. We will, however, continue to defend members where their professionalism is publicly questioned."
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Your Comments
witheredofOZ (Manchester United fan)
"Alan Wiley has probably been advised by his lawyers that IF he went to court he'd have to have real trial with video & witness evidenc instead of trial by tabloid. What fergie said was true but of course nobody can criticise refs. Everybody else in football is scrutinised daily but some get a much easier ride than others & fergie is paying the price of success"
damian666 (Sunderland fan)
"the ref was 2 slow 2 fat fact lucky man u. ftm"
Faroese_United (Manchester United fan)
"mu2008 is just so right!!!! shouting the ref is a part of football!! it has been for so many years!! why change it!! :("
BRACK66 (Manchester United fan)
"When will Leighton (who HAS used this case in a quite disgraceful manner to publicly attack Ferguson in pursuit of his own 15 minutes of fame) and Wiley realise that to question a referee's level of fitness does NOT question his integrity. Ferguson never queried whether Wiley was impartial?!"
mu2008 (Manchester United fan)
"Ehhh am I the only one thinking if we take the passion out of the game, what will then be left? In the old days the coaches and refs would shout at eachother 5 min after the final whistle. Nowadays if the coach swears on the telly he will get a penalty, if he makes a fart he will get a penalty, and if es upset by poor decisions he will get a penalty, and if he gets personal he will then be sued.... wtf is wrong with all this? You get the picture? We live in a free world where theres no censorship, this is one of our western things we are very proud of, but in football its not allowed. For me it spoils a lot, and I still miss the days of the Fergie vs Wegners battles, and the days of Mourinho ranting at each and everybody. Its a entertainment indystri, but the passion is getting less and less allowed..... It makes me sad."
Oracle - The Matrix (Liverpool fan)
"joemailey (Manchester United fan), what have you been smoking? Ngog dive?! Wake up dude!"
joec8 (Sheffield Wednesday fan)
"I think worse has been said about referees in the past. This action just ddin't make any sense. I feel Fergie was penalised become of the quantity of remarks towards referees rather than the severity of the remark on this occasion. The fact is that Wiley really was slowing down the game and simply couldn't keep up."
zuluisgrate (Nottingham Forest fan)
"Use of third-eye cameras would put an end to this nonsense once and for all. What are they waiting for?"
nwannem (Chelsea fan)
"Sir Alex, no doubt is a great Coach, but he will stop attacking referees when results of matches are not on his favour..This attitude of his is a chink in his amour...."
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