Nottingham Forest’s four-point Premier League sanction has been called a “slap on the wrist” by the head of a Luton fan group who believes the financial punishment system is ripe for manipulation.
The Hatters are now out of the relegation zone after nearest rivals Forest were yesterday docked four points for breaches of the top-flights profitability and sustainability (PSR) rules.
Clubs in the Premier League are allowed to lose £105million over a three-year rolling period, £35million a year, but the losses of promoted clubs is less, restricted to £13million a year.
As Forest were promoted via the 2022 Championship play-offs, they were permitted to lose £61million, but breached this threshold by £34.5million.
After a two-day independent committee hearing between March 7 and 8 the Reds were yesterday handed a four-point penalty which saw them drop one point below Luton, who snatched a 1-1 draw against the Reds on Saturday, thanks to an 89th minute Luke Berry leveller.
It’s the second points penalty this season in the top-flight after Everton, who also breached PSR rules, were docked ten points but had it reduced to six on appeal. The Toffees are also still facing further sanctions.
Despite an initial suggestion of eight points for Forest, they were given a six-point penalty but because they co-operated with the investigation, they were given two points back.
Nottingham Forest are yet to indicate if they will appeal the points penalty, as Everton did. The Premier League’s rules state that any appeals process should ‘conclude no later than and if possible some time before 24 May’. But that is five days after the season finishes.
Reacting to the news, Tony Murray, the chairman of Luton Town Supporters’ Trust, said: “It seems just like a slap on the wrist more than anything. As far as I understand, the Forest offence was worse than Everton’s and Everton have been given a harder punishment.
“Apparently, Forest were given two points back because they fully co-operated with the investigation. Now, my point of view is that they should be co-operating anyway, and if you don’t co-operate then there’s more points (added on).
“I don’t understand the logic of what they’ve actually done. I’ve got no beef with Nottingham Forest at all and after the game on Saturday I was talking to some Forest fans in the pub. They were saying that they thought it was unjust and they were making a big thing about the sale of (Brennan) Johnson (after the accounting deadline).
“They waited a few weeks so they could get more money in. I pointed out to them that in that same period, they actually spent £42million on transfers.
“So, you knew full well what you were doing. So, it just seems to me that, at the moment, unscrupulous owners can overspend, get better players in, (thinking) we’ll get more points than we’re going to be deducted anyway. So, it totally undermines the integrity of the league.”
Murray, along with current chief executive Gary Sweet, was part of the fan group, then called Trust in Luton, which forced former owner John Gurney out of the club in 2003.
That was part of a turbulent period for the Hatters, including three periods of administration, which ultimately saw them docked a record 30 points – 20 from the Football League and ten from the Football Association for irregularities in the club’s transfer dealings – before the 2008/09 season, which after two successive relegations to the fourth tier, effectively relegated Luton out of the Football League before a ball was kicked that season.
The penalties for Nottingham Forest and Everton are small-fry in comparision, but there is still controversy in the unclear way in which punishments are meted out.
Speaking to the BBC, Murray said: “I want to see a situation where the football authorities implement a deduction or a set penalty.
“We were put in a position (in 2008) where we had to take that points deduction and we were told, ‘you’re not allowed to appeal otherwise you’ll lose your golden share’, so we’d have been out of the league a year earlier than we actually were.
“It’s unjust as well because the ten point deduction that we got from the FA, it was reported to the FA by our club officials, so they wouldn’t have known anything about it if our club secretary hadn’t told them.
“You hear fans of the big six and they’re moaning, (saying), ‘we’re not going to finish in the top four this season, isn’t it dreadful? It’s the end of the world.’
“You try being kicked out of the Football League, mate. Then you can start moaning about that.”
Forest’s penalty came a day before the government will introduce to Parliament the Football Governance Bill. After the Bill is introduced, it must go through the parliamentary process before it is made law and an independent football regulator is introduced.
The regulator will have powers in improving financial sustainability of clubs, ensuring financial resilience across the leagues and safeguarding English football’s heritage.
