West Ham to appear before an FA arbitral tribunal to contest the three-match ban handed to Andy Carroll decision
The club have confirmed that they will face the tribunal but have no plans to take the matter to a court
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.West Ham will today appear before a Football Association arbitral tribunal to challenge Andy Carroll's three-match suspension.
The Hammers are unhappy that the England striker's ban - a consequence of being sent off against Swansea last week - was not overturned.
Co-owner David Gold said on Thursday that his club were seeking "legal redress" over the matter, although a statement on West Ham's official website this morning ruled out any sort of court action.
"West Ham United are today (Friday) appearing before an FA Arbitral Tribunal in a challenge to the FA Regulatory Commission's decision relating to the three-match suspension of Andy Carroll," it read.
"The club is concerned that the Regulatory Commission did not apply the correct test under the rule, and denied the club procedural fairness.
"West Ham's complaint is made under the FA Rules, and the club shall accept and abide by the decision of the FA Arbitral Tribunal.
"The club has no intention of taking the issue to the courts, but simply seeks a fair determination of its rights under the FA's Rules."
Referee Howard Webb made the decision to send off the striker after a clash with Swansea's Chico Flores.
Carroll is now facing a three-match ban and Gold said that could mean the difference between relegation and top-flight survival.
Gold said on Thursday: "We are hugely disappointed at the outcome of the process.
"There is nowhere to go other than to seek some kind of legal redress. It's not ideal, the last thing I want to do is go to some kind of legal issue because I think it is a footballing issue.
"But we are fighting for our lives. If we were mid-table we would probably get on with it but we are fighting for our lives to retain our Premier League status and we owe it to our fans, we owe it to ourselves."
Hammers manager Sam Allardyce said at his press conference this morning: "My reaction to Andy's red card was one of injustice. Unfortunately the panel has not seen it as they should have.
"In this case we based our procedure on whether it was an obvious mistake (to send him off) and I'm 100 per cent certain it was an obvious mistake.
"I hope that common sense prevails. If there's a decision today hopefully it's a positive one."
PA
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments