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just came across this online.

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528, ... 18,00.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

racism in football is a problem. we all know this. racism in life is a problem, we all know this too.

I realise in cases such as this, we don't have "all the facts", but why is Mark McCammon claiming it was racist treatment he endured because he was asked to be at the ground amid bad (snowy) weather, the club refused to pay his private medical bills, and transfers fell through at a late stage when he was trying to leave the club.

i'm not for one moment condoning racism, but is this guy for real ?? He may well have a case of being treated unfairly, but he's made sure it gets maximum exposure by claiming it was racially motivated.

things do need to change in society and in football, but it never will when it is so easy to play the "victim of racism" card.

It's a tough one. Before reading the article I was expecting a load of rubbish but actually, if that is the whole story, I'd say he has a point.

There is most likely some information that has been missed here though, the player's attitude in training is usually the main one. The trouble is, even if there was racist intent there from GFC, it would be nearly impossible to prove unless someone slips up under questioning. I'd say he certainly has a case for Unfair Dismissal but I highly doubt anything will come of the racist claims.

yeah, you're right - it definitely sounds like he has a case for unfair dismissal/treatment.

but in my opinion, turning it into a racism claim, gets it more publicity, but lessens the credibility of the claim.

again, we'll never have access to all the facts, so we'll never know, but it just seemed, on the face of it, unnecessary (and too easy), to go down that route.

We don't know if they asked him to try and come in in bad conditions simply because he lived closer? Or perhaps it was just worded differently on the phonecall with him, like "try to make it in if you can".

Clubs always tend to try and protect their best players, and it sounds as if McCammon didn't really live up to the expectation, which could be why they didn't fancy stomaching medical costs when he was already their best played player. Whereas the man they flew to Dubai might have been crucial to their expectations that season.

For one reason or another it seems as if the relationship between McCammon and the chairman soured. Whether that is down to his race is fairly dubious in my view, as I'm sure Gills have many other players from different ethnic origins that are treated perfectly well.

thought as much....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-18612315" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

He has basically just screwed up his career now, who on earth is going to sign someone who's just going to throw about racist allegations?

Fool...

Nothing has been decided in this case yet, why say "thought as much" when the headline pertains to the views of the chaiman not the tribunal.

"thought as much" in that by throwing the racism claims in there, it's become the main focus, and was always going to be ferosiously denied by the club, meaning his claims of being treated badly, have been completely lost. he should've said "i was treated like dirt" full stop. the fact he's chosen to say "i was treated like dirt because i'm black" in my opinion, is going to do nothing but harm to his case.

http://www1.skysports.com/football/news ... s-tribunal" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Tribunal finds is favour of McCammon.

A "land mine" of a decision for those who bury their heads in the sand.

Judging from the reaction of the Gillingham fans on their forum, it seems he was a bit (if not very) shit. This, surely, is a more reliable reason to call him in for extra training than because he is black?

That said, it does seem that the reporting of the incident has rather skewed the timeline of the matter. So far as I can make out from the statement released by solicitor for the claimant, the whole shebang revolves around the fact that the player made an allegation of discrimination on the grounds of race (for being called in for training in the snow when none of the white honkies were [if Snoop Doggy Dog can say the N word, I can say honkie]). The real crux of the matter seems to be that no investigation was carried out following this complaint and the player was subsequently offloaded for being useless.

Quite how this is a case of unfair dismissal, I'm not at all sure, maybe if a white guy tries it and we see where that gets him...

What do we think then? Is this an(other) example of a black guy playing the race card in order to get his own way, or has he genuinely been mistreated because he has darker skin than the natives?

Matt.

i agree matt. the world has gone racism mad again, fuelled mainly at the moment, by football.

if this guy has been wronged by Gillingham, then fair enough, good luck to him, and judging by the verdict he seems to have a case of constructive dismissal or whatever, but was it really because he is black ??

if so, i'd fully expect to see all Gillingham's black players come out in support of McCammon and refuse to play for the club ever again.

Regiment wrote:i agree matt. the world has gone racism mad again, fuelled mainly at the moment, by football.

if this guy has been wronged by Gillingham, then fair enough, good luck to him, and judging by the verdict he seems to have a case of constructive dismissal or whatever, but was it really because he is black ??

if so, i'd fully expect to see all Gillingham's black players come out in support of McCammon and refuse to play for the club ever again.

Completely agree.

If other black players from that time came out and said "yeah I think i was mistreated too" then you'd think maybe it was suspicious. However I haven't heard about any such person do so? As Matt says, McCammon appeared to be a big money signing that never lived up to the hype and so the board probably grew disillusioned with him and having to foot the cost of his sizeable medical bills. He may have also been asked to come in simply as he lived closer than other players?

It's obviously hard to tell without hearing the full story and as Regiment says he may well have a case for wrongful dismissal but with no other clear examples of the same type of racism coming out of the club I remain sceptical, despite the jury's verdict.