Football: West Ham hurt by bans for Allen and Dicks: Bonds admits disciplinary problem as suspension threaten promotion hopes
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WITH nine games remaining in their promotion campaign, First Division West Ham were hit hard by the Football Association yesterday when they lost two influential players, midfielder Martin Allen and left-back Julian Dicks, to suspensions. Allen was also fined pounds 1,000.
Allen, humorously nicknamed 'Mad Dog' by West Ham fans, was unsmiling after a four-match ban that means he will miss home games against Millwall and Leicester and away matches at Birmingham and Southend. Allen has been booked 12 times this season and became the first player to reach 41 points in a season.
Dicks, who has a notorious record, will miss the Millwall and Birmingham matches. He was booked for the 40th time in five years against Oxford on Tuesday. He has collected 31 points this season, been sent off three times, and said after hearing the decision: 'If I had enough money I'd pack up the game.' His manager, Billy Bonds, admitted: 'We have a disciplinary problem and we will have to deal with it. This is a major blow with some vital games coming up.' West Ham currently have a three-point lead over third-placed Portsmouth.
West Ham may also be thinking of reinforcements and are reported to have offered pounds 200,000 for Bury's Islington-born midfielder, Ronnie Mauge, aged 23.
The Association of Premier League and Football League Referees and Linesmen, has issued a 14-page document calling for major changes. They want assessments to be made by an independent panel, as before, and not by club managers, and point out that in terms of remuneration they are the poor men of Europe. German referees receive pounds 1,000 for a Bundesliga appearance, while English referees get pounds 165 for a Premier League game and pounds 130 for a Football League game.
On an hourly basis, the Association says, referees are paid pounds 8.33p per hour and linesmen pounds 3.88 per hour. But John Deakin, president of the Association, denied that the document entitled, Decision Time, is simply aimed at increasing pay. 'It is not purely about remuneration. It raises a number of issues designed to improve the quality of match control,' he said.
A last-minute hitch prevented the pounds 1.5m exchange deal involving Coventry's Kevin Gallacher and Blackburn's Roy Wegerle being completed yesterday, although matters are expected to be settled today.
The problem arose over Blackburn's completing inquiries into Gallacher's fitness. Coventry are due to receive pounds 1m plus Wegerle.
Alan Little, 38, brother of the Leicester City manager, was, as expected, promoted from coach to manager at York City, in succession to John Ward, now with Bristol Rovers.
On the penultimate day before the transfer deadlineNottingham Forest watched Southend's Stan Collymore play in the 4-0 defeat at Notts County on Tuesday and then decided that pounds 1.75m was their limit for the 22-year-old striker. 'We have made our final offer,' Forest's assistant manager, Ronnie Fenton, said. Oldham completed the signing of striker Darren Beckford from Norwich, for pounds 300,000.
Crystal Palace strengthened their squad by taking winger Louis Donowa and goalkeeper Martin Thomas on loan from Birmingham.
Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday players will be the first to have their names displayed on shirts for a major Wembley cup final, the Coca-Cola Cup final on 18 April.
'This will appeal to the fans who attend and be helpful to the public who watch on television,' Lee Walker, the Football League's controller of broadcasting, said. 'The experiment is a one-off, but we will monitor closely the reception from fans.'
Barnet's trio of northern-based players were set to sign new contracts last night in order for their chairman, Stan Flashman, is able to satisfy the Football League's latest demands.
The League gave Barnet until today's 5pm transfer deadline to sort out outstanding issues relating to players' contracts after Brendan Batson, of the Professional Footballers' Association, had put their case to the Third Division club.
Paul Showler, Kenny Lowe and record signing Mark Carter were to sign new contracts before last night's friendly at Chesham. Jonathan Hunt, Hakan Hayrettin and Gavin McPherson, a 21-year-old striker who has yet to make his senior debut, are the other players referred to in the League's ultimatum.
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