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Warning over Hume legal action
Barnsley have been warned that any attempt to pursue a private action against Sheffield United over the Iain Hume/Chris Morgan incident would be fraught with difficulty.
Garry Dickinson, one of the region's leading sports claims experts, was last night responding to the Football Association's decision not to punish Sheffield United's Chris Morgan further.
The latest twist to a saga which has sparked a new cold war between Bramall Lane and Oakwell comes less than 24 hours after United scored a major off-the-field victory when a High Court judge temporarily refused West Ham leave to appeal against the decision they must pay Kevin Blackwell's side damages after the Carlos Tevez Affair.
But it is events surrounding Morgan's challenge on Barnsley's Hume during a heated South Yorkshire derby earlier this month, which left the Canada international with a fractured skull, that threatens to have the most immediate impact upon Blackwell's team.
Soho Square's announcement on Tuesday prompted an angry response from United's rivals who are now considering other legal alternatives.
Speaking after the midweek defeat by Wolves, Sam Ellis, Blackwell's assistant, insisted that Barnsley's hardline stance was not effecting Morgan's performances – "He's not playing like it is he" – but United will keen to prevent the issue overshadowing their preparations for Saturday's trip to Ipswich Town.
Dickinson said: "I have never heard of a club taking an action of this sort against another club. It would be unprecedented and I would be worried about its merits.
"Feelings are running high and it's a high-profile incident. I have been involved in lots of player-to-player actions before but nothing like this.
"Iain was obviously an expensive acquisition and, as such, Barnsley would have expected him to play the majority of their games.
"But he could have sustained a serious injury in the next game and so working out what him being unavailable might be worth would be very difficult to quantify."
United, whose relationship with Barnsley was initially damaged during negotiations over the transfer of Brian Howard, will analyse Dickinson's opinion.
But they were already celebrating the news they had been granted an injunction preventing West Ham taking their case to the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The Londoners, who despite this latest setback have vowed to press ahead, will attempt to overturn the ruling early next year while United will seek a permanent order.
Tevez, now of Manchester United, was deemed to have played a key part in helping West Ham survive relegation at the end of the 2006/07 Premiership campaign despite not being eligible for selection.
United, who were relegated, could now claim around 30m in compensation.
Meanwhile, United reserves were beaten 3-0 by Sunderland at the Bright Finance Stadium last night.
Pascal Chimbonda, Daryl Murphy and El Hadji Diouf all featured for the visitors.
Barnsley sign loan striker as Hume cover: CLICK HERE FOR STORY
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Weather for Sheffield
Thursday 24 May 2012
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