QPR guilty, no points deducted

[os5889]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/13318784.stm

[HatterDon]

disgusting.

Some sides get hammered by both the league AND the FA in one season and then get penalized the NEXT season for the same offense. Other sides get NOTHING.

There was even a promoted side who not only had their promotion nullified but were also relegated a few years back -- Swindon?  Obviously, if you are in London, there are special rules that only apply to you.

disgusting.

[Burt]

QPR will be promoted as Championship winners after they escaped a points deduction despite being found guilty of two of seven charges relating to the Alejandro Faurlin signing.

The club were accused of breaking third-party ownership rules over the Argentine's £3.5m transfer in 2009.

It had been feared that QPR could be docked points, which could have left them in the play-off places.

But the verdict means they will receive the Championship trophy on Saturday.

The men from Loftus Road host Leeds in their final game of the season.

Reacting to the verdict, QPR manager Neil Warnock told BBC Sport: "There have been a few tears in the dressing room. It's been a hell of a time and how they [the players] have been able to focus I'll never know.

"I can't praise them high enough. It hasn't sunk in completely. It's just a relief to know we are the champions.

"People have been speaking out who didn't know their facts. Our barrister said to me we have breached a couple of regulations but he didn't see a points deduction."

The decision not to dock the west Londoners points followed a hearing by an independent tribunal convened by the Football Association.

The tribunal had been scheduled to deliver its findings by 1600 BST on Friday but the verdict was delayed because of the weight of evidence.

That prolonged the agony for QPR, who had secured their promotion to the Premier League as champions with a 2-0 win at Watford last Saturday, but had to put their celebrations on hold.

The FA had been investigating the case since September, when QPR first asked for permission to buy out the third party that owned the economic rights of Faurlin.

Argentine Faurlin has scored three goals this season QPR were prompted to do this by the Football League's introduction of rules prohibiting the third-party ownership of players.

The League told the Loftus Road outfit they would have to notify the FA of their plans and it then became apparent the club may have been in breach of FA regulations for more than a year.

A preliminary statement from the FA read: "The regulatory commission hearing charges brought by the FA against Queens Park Rangers FC wish to announce that although two of the charges have been found to be proved there will be no points deduction made from Queens Park Rangers FC in this season or the next."

The verdict ends the possibility of Welsh sides Cardiff or Swansea moving into an automatic promotion place at QPR's expense.

But Swansea chairman Huw Jenkins told BBC Radio Wales he will not take any further action regarding the decision.

[Burt]

The big and right decision was bottled.

Flouting the rules, being found guilty and then getting away with no penalty is a hell of a precedent to set and maintain.

I suspect if QPR had ended the season in mid-table they would have had a points deduction.

[LBNo11]

...Quelle surprise! Call me a cynic...

[TheDaddy]

What a load of bottling morons !

[epsomraver]

521: Breaking news: QPR have confirmed they have been fined £875,000 by the Football Association over the transfer of Alejandro Faurlin.drop in the ocean to going up .

[os5889]

Cardiff and Swansea have confirmed they will not appeal the ruling

[Scrumpy]

'Disgusting', 'Bottling morons' etc. There's a lot of strong rhetoric in this thread but I ask whether any of you fellas no more facts than the rest of us?

They were charged on 10 accounts, and found guilty of 2. The only fact I am aware of is that the 2 charges they were found guilty of were 'technical'. These could be as simple as faxing the appropriate paperwork 2 days late, or signing a form in the wrong spot. They could be entirely innocent of anything more substantial.

I'm no fan of QPR, or Colin, (or the FA to be honest) but I think we should wait for some more facts to come out before we start slinging the mud. I expect a few more details to be made clearer in the Sunday papers, and then we will see whether this was a fair penalty, or a bottle job.

Of course, the FA do not have a good record with this kind of thing, so I may be first in line slinging the mud once more is known!