Williamson - Guilty as charged.Mike Williamson has been found guilty of violent conduct and will miss the next three games.
Williamson had decided to appeal the charge after The FA had found him guilty using video evidence after the match against Bolton last weekend, but it would appear that the appeal held no water and will mean that Williamson will sit out the matches against Chelsea, West Brom and Liverpool.
On the slightly positive side, at least The FA didn’t decide to extend his ban to four games, which they can do if they deem the appeal to be frivolous, but it does kind of leave me scratching my head as to why the appeal was not deemed to be frivolous? I must admit that I was fully expecting The FA to extend the ban to four games, so on that front I am pleasantly surprised.
I mean surely, given the speed at which they charged Williamson, you could be reasonably assured that The FA saw the video evidence and managed to pass judgement rather quickly. An open and shut case so to speak? (more…)
Guilty?The breaking news is that Mike Williamson has denied the charge of violent conduct thrust upon him by The FA.
Williamson had been charged after an incident with Bolton’s Johan Elmander during the weekend defeat at The Reebok.
Williamson escaped punishment at the time as referee Howard Webb claimed that he didn’t see it, which left the door open for The FA to use retrospective punishment with the aid of video replays, just like they did with Joey Barton.
I’m not sure whether or not denying the charge is a good move in all honesty.
To me it looked like Williamson was gulty, although I don’t think he meant to go into Elmander as hard as he did, or with his head leading. Instead I think it was an attempt at a bodycheck similar to what Nicklas Bendtner did to Williamson a few weeks back when we played Arsenal in the Carling Cup.
Williamson is in risky territory now. The FA have obviously seen enough to warrant charging him, so I think it is unlikely that they will change their mind. That will mean that Williamson will face an extended ban for making an appeal that is deemed to be frivolous. (more…)
Ranger - Contract extension?It looks like Nile Ranger could be set for a new long-term contract at Newcastle.
The Shields Gazette is suggesting that the young forward could be in line to sign a new five and a half year deal that would keep him at the club until the summer of 2016.
Ranger has yet to start a Premier League game for Newcastle, but he has looked the part whenever he has been called upon as a substitute or in the Carling Cup.
Newcastle have already pinned Andy Carroll down to a new five year deal, which is understandable given the good impression that the Gateshead lad has made on the Premier League, and there are also rumours, that are still to be confirmed, suggesting that Mike Williamson could be in line for a new three year deal.
Is this move evidence of longer term planning starting to happen at Newcastle? Shocking as it seems, it certainly looks that way! (more…)
Mike Williamson has unsurprisingly been charged by the FA today for violent conduct. Mike was involved in an off the ball incident with Bolton’s Johan Elmander during the humiliating and diabolical 5-1 loss on Saturday.
The incident wasn’t spotted by referee Howard Webb during the match and The FA chose to review the situation afterwards. They certainly didn’t like what they saw and have charged the defender for violent conduct.
Here is what a spokesman from The FA had to say this evening;
“Newcastle United defender Mike Williamson has today been charged with violent conduct.”
“The charge relates to an incident involving Johan Elmander in his side’s fixture with Bolton Wanderers on Saturday, November 20.”
“Williamson has until 6pm on Tuesday, November 23rd to reply to the charge and under The FA’s fast-track regulations may admit the charge and accept a standard three-match suspension.”
On the whole I think Willo has been steady this season. With Coloccini suspended as well it could very well mean that we see a partnership of Sol Campbell and Steven Taylor at the heart of the United defence in the absence of Hugton’s seemingly first choice pairing. (more…)
Williamson - Another player, another ban?It looks like Mike Williamson could be the latest Newcastle player to face a suspension.
It has emerged that The FA are to have a look at video evidence of the clash between him and Bolton’s Johann Elmander.
Heaven only knows if it was an accidental clash or whther there was any malice in the challenge, but I don’t feel overly confident about Williamson’s chances of escaping a ban. After all, I can’t remember the last time The FA took no action after they decided to have a look at something again.
So it appears that Newcastle face the very real prospect of having another player suspended for the weekend visit of Chelsea, which is far from ideal considering we already have a squad that is depleted through injuries and suspensions as it stands.
Joey Barton will sit out the match as he serves the last game of the three game ban he was awarded for punching Morten Gamst Pedersen whilst Fabricio Coloccini will start his three game ban he picked up for his elbowing incident last weekend. (more…)
Mike Williamson has unsurprisingly been charged by the FA today for violent conduct. Mike was involved in an off the ball incident with Bolton’s Johan Elmander during the humiliating and diabolical 5-1 loss on Saturday.