Jewell points to cheats' charter

PAUL JEWELL says he always smelled a rat over the Premier League’s handling of the West Ham controversy, and by not deducting points claims they have left the door open for clubs to cheat.

Luis Boa Morte is congratualted by his fellow West Ham players for netting the opener Luis Boa Morte is congratualted by his fellow West Ham players for netting the opener

The Wigan manager says the League were also frightened of opening a can of worms involving big clubs.

These are important questions for  the Premier League to answer, but if we are analysing courage, then the Hammers are equipped for this fight, with or without the help of temperate justice.

It is four months since manager Alan Curbishley had his Baby Bentley rant after the 6-0 hammering at Reading, and in that time he has developed a team capable of winning a relegation battle.

But Jewell’s point is that the League, by fining West Ham for breaking the rules in the signings of Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano, have not dealt severely enough with cheating. What is a £5.5million fine for fielding two ineligible players when there is £50m at stake for staying in the Premiership?

I did smell a rat. They knew they bottled it.

Paul Jewell, Wigan manager

League Two club Accrington played two ineligible players but were fined only £12,000 by the Football League less than a month ago.

“I did smell a rat when Accrington Stanley got fined to be perfectly honest,” said Jewell.

“Bury got kicked out of the FA Cup for fielding an ineligible player and when it came to fruition that West Ham might have done a similar thing, they might have got their heads together and said, ‘Listen, don’t take points off Accrington Stanley, you’d better fine them.”

Jewell also claims the Premier League were desperate for Wigan to beat West Ham. “An insider told one of my people, ‘Please beat West Ham on Saturday’. Because they know they’ve bottled it.”

He also said that if West Ham had been deducted points it could had led to other inquiries “at one or two London clubs who are quite high up in the league”.

Jewell could be thinking of Brazilian defender Alex, alleged to be a Chelsea player, who is playing for PSV Eindhoven  and appeared against the Londoners in the Champions League.

The Blues deny they hold Alex’s registration but do say they have first option to buy.“What would have happened if I had played my suspended player Antonio Valencia?” asked Jewell. “If it’s a fine and it keeps you in the Premier League it’s worth it.

“The Premier League have set a dangerous precedent. I would have bet some of my pals to my last penny that if West Ham had been marooned, if they had been Watford, they would have had points deducted.

“It would have been a shame if West Ham went down because of that, but it happened to Middlesbrough.”

Boro were deducted three points for not fulfilling a fixture because of injury and illness and were relegated in the

1996-97 season.

That Tevez was one of the stars of a one-sided West Ham show does not help. Take Tevez out of the equation, or three points, and West Ham’s brighter future does not glow so much.

Chairman Eggert Magnusson must pay the £5.5m, but he looked at the 6,000 West Ham fans who filled one end of the JJB Stadium and said: “It has been an expensive week, yes, but worth it. Just look at the supporters.

“I have always believed we could stay up, now others are believing it. Alan Curbishley questioned the motivation of the players but day by day, week by week, he has built the spirit until now we are there.”

At 1-0 Magnusson was out of his seat. At 2-0 he winked and shook a colleague’s hand. At 3-0 he hugged his wife.

This victory was engineered by two of the anti-relegation signings, Lucas Neill and Luis Boa Morte. More, there was union within the Hammers.

When Mark Noble filled in for Neill at right-back, Neill shook his hand in appreciation; when Noble and James Collins put their bodies in front of Emile Heskey’s close-range shot, Anton Ferdinand showed his thanks. The Baby Bentleys? Parked.

WIGAN 0

WEST HAM 3

WIGAN (4-4-2): Filan 5; Boyce 5, Jackson 5, De Zeeuw 6 (Unsworth 24, 5), Baines 5; Kilbane 5 (Aghahaowa 54, 5), Soko 5, Landzaat 4 (Scharner 46, 5), McCulloch 4; Heskey 7, Camara 5. Booked: Camara.

WEST HAM (4-4-2): Green 6; Neill 8, Collins 7, Ferdinand 7, McCartney 7; Benayoun 7, Reo-Coker 7 (Mullins 85, 5), Noble 7, Boa Morte 8; Tevez 9 (Spector 83), Zamora 8 (Harewood 68, 6). Booked: McCartney,

Reo-Coker. Goals: Boa Morte 30, Benayoun 57, Harewood 82.

Referee: G Poll (Hertfordshire).

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