EVANS: How the whole sorry affair played out under the gaze of the nation..

Players' union chief Gordon Taylor apologised for his Hillsborough gaffe

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THE APOLOGY

Mob rule won

CHED Evans blamed “mob rule” for his Latics move collapsing and apologised to his rape victim for the first time.

Since he was released halfway through a five year prison sentence last October, Evans has said nothing, his silence interpreted as arrogance by some.

As news of the Oldham Athletic deal collapsing broke, Evans (26) released a statement claiming the new North Stand at Boundary Park would have been put into jeopardy if he had joined.

He said: “Sadly the mob rule tactics employed by the more radical elements of our society and the constant media reporting has had the desired influence on some sponsors and the club would face significant financial pressure if I joined them.

“The most significant issue for me was that owing to the threat of funding opportunities being withdrawn, which may jeopardise the building of Oldham’s new stand, it would mean that workers would lose their jobs and others would be put at risk – that would simply not be fair.”

In an earlier statement, the former Sheffield United striker apologised for his actions on the night of the rape for which he was found guilty of and condemned those that have hounded the victim, who has been forced to change her identity five times since the incident.

Evans continues to maintain his innocence but said: “I wholeheartedly apologise for the effects that night in Rhyl has had on many people, not least the woman concerned.”


THE CLUB STATEMENT

OLDHAM Athletic’s chief executive Neil Joy’s statement read: “The whole issue has divided opinion and the club has been put under unbearable pressure as a result.

“Proceeding could have placed significant financial pressure on the club and continued to be a divisive influence. As a consequence, the deal could not go ahead.

“As a club we condemn all crime including rape and, irrespective of any appeal procedure, it was always the case that we were prepared to withstand the barrage of abuse that is evident within the country and on social media.

“We deplore and condemn the vile and abusive threats, including death threats, which have been made to our fans, sponsors and staff whilst this process has been in the public domain.

“Finally, we would like to place on record our gratitude to all who have supported the club during this difficult period.”

A police statement said only a small number of complaints had been made about comments on social media. There have been no official complaints and police are not currently investigating.


THE COUNCIL

No winners

“THERE are no winners in all this...”

Oldham Council leader Jim McMahon has called for “restraint and calm”.

He said: “I’ve always believed in rehabilitation but felt that both club and player should have allowed Mr Evans’ appeal to run its course before agreeing a contract.

“As it stands Mr Evans has been found guilty in a court of law and has not yet completed his sentence. However, I take no pleasure in this outcome.

“The whole episode has divided the town and public opinion and there are no winners in all this — not least of all the reputation of our club and town.”



GORDON’S GAFFE

The head of the footballers' union has apologised after comparing Ched Evans's situation to the Hillsborough disaster.

Gordon Taylor told BBC Radio Merseyside: "The last thing I intended to do was to upset anybody connected to the Hillsborough case." The chief executive of the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) prompted a storm of controversy after telling BBC Radio 5 Live: "He would not be the first person or persons to have been found guilty and maintained their innocence and then been proved right.

"If we are talking about things in football, we know what happened, what was alleged to have happened at Hillsborough. And it's now unravelling and we are finding it was very different to how it was portrayed at the time — indeed by the police at the time."


THE POLICE CHIEF

Threats blasted


TOP cop Peter Fahy said threats made towards Latics board members are “totally unacceptable”.

A club director said that a staff member was informed a named relative would be raped if the deal went ahead and there has been “enormous pressure” from sponsors.

Greater Manchester’s chief constable Sir Peter Fahy said his force would be launching an investigation into threats to the club’s staff and their families but added that no complaint had been made by the club so far.

A GMP spokesperson said: “The force has received a small number of complaints about comments made on social networking sites, however none of these relate to any direct threats made to individuals or their families.

“Advice has been given that if anyone wishes to report these comments as potential criminal offences they can do so and we will act accordingly. However, no such reports have been made.”