to post a link to an Oldham sponsor that will continue to support them even with Ched Evans?

[mrleebob]

If it would be, please ignore this.

If not, here it is. www.cmsolicitors.co.uk

Plenty of contact details too. :-)

I think we need to be very careful here - we've got no firm evidence that rape threats were not made against those on "the CE side".

If they were made, it is beyond abhorrent.

If they were not made then we need to let the authorities deal with it and we can only really comment once a conclusion has been reached.

Usually can you highlight any posts that condone the threat against the board member/their relative/anyone else? I can't see it. Thanks.

I think it is churlish to say that his apology is "not worth anything", House. He must be capable of redemption, else this really is a witch hunt. This doesn't redeem him (hasn't admitted his crime - but won't do at least until his CCRC process is complete - and the victim harassment has not been acknowledged), but to suggest that his apology is worthless isn't right.

For one thing, I can well imagine (given the apparently standard of legal advice available in the NW!) that he was advised not to make any such statement while he held out for an appeal. I don't think that advice is correct, but he may have been given it and have been following it.

apparently poor standard of legal advice available in the NW, obvs...

But that's not what I said, House. He may well have been advised not to say anything that might be interpreted as an apology for what happened, even if it did not amount to an apology for rape.

That is very conservative advice, and in my view it is wrong. But it may have been given and he may have relied on it. That doesn't excuse his failure to apologise, but it does explain it.

Of course he hasn't apologised for the harassment at all.

If there have been threats to the Oldham Athletic board members and their loved-ones I deplore them and would encourage them to report the miscreants to the police.

Steben I didn't think it was possible for me to despise Allison Pearson more, so thanks (kind of) for your link.

I've just heard the rapist Ched Evans's new statement. Blimey, quite sensible. Perhaps he's got a new PR adviser. I hope he kept the receipts for the old one because he deserves his money back even if he deserves nothing else.

he has now apologised to the lady he was convicted of raping, which is a start

No, he hasn't, Iamtheeggman. I understand why he hasn't, but he definitely hasn't. He has only made a somewhat oddly phrased apology for the effects that night had on the people in Rhyl, including the woman concerned. Which is not an apology for rape.

I wouldn't be too sure that he really meant the apology for infidelity either, TBH - it's not consistent with his freely stated belief that footballers are entitled to have sex with any woman they want. I suspect the apology had more to do with the fact that it doesn't sound like Massey is a man you want to annoy.

House, Icimoi - I think it lacks grace not to acknowledge the positive in what he has said, even if (as I stated above) there is a whole lot more that he needs to do before he can in any way be said be rehabilitated to the extent that he should be allowed to play professional football again.

And Icimoi - read my post again. He has apologised to the woman he was convicted of raping. He has not apologised for raping her, but then he wouldn't would he? Once his CCRC review has produced nothing and his conviction will stand, then he can admit his guilt and apologise for raping her, or rot in hell forever.

By continuing to insist that everything he does is wrong, even when it is better than what he has done before, plays well to the "witch hunt" Chedistas.

I'm with limitedperiodonly - the statement was well written (his lawyers clearly aren't Carter Moore) and what I would have expected of a man in his position who continues to protest his innocence.

Did he mean it House, or did he think that by apologising for infidelity he would get something out of it?

Would Karl Massey have been so supportive if he hadn't apologised for cheating?

A good "and another thing" post, Icimoi. This is a victory (psst: ignore the rape threats bullsh1t from the board: this IS a victory). Let's not be graceless in victory.

House, without wanting to give too much away, I am familiar with how legal is given and received. I can well imagine that his solicitors presented him with a menu of options as to how much he could say publicly about the night in question. Option 1, the lowest risk option, would always have been to say nothing. Option 2, which is today's mealy-mouthed apology, is infinitesimally riskier from a legal perspective (saying something is always riskier than saying nothing), even if it is much better from a PR perspective. And RCE has not been getting much PR advice, it seems...

"The best legal advice money can buy" is often surprisingly poor quality, by the way. The solicitor who advised him during his police interview should be embarrassed. He should have been advised to say nothing, and he would be playing for the Blades today.

x-post - I glad you have acknowledged the apology, House. Kind of.

Sorry, this must have got lost at the bottom of the last page, so I'll repeat it here

From David Conn's Twitter.

Ched Evans: Police say they called Oldham Athletic & sponsors and were told no threats been made; a couple of "low level abuse on Twitter."

Make of that what you will.

Ched's apology would only be meaningful if he had that site taken down. Or at least took cctv footage, pink mini pictures, and anything else that blames the victim.

He probably has the best legal advice money can buy

I wouldn't be too sure about that, but I agree, his girlfriend's dad has probably spent quite a lot of money on it.

Has there been an official statement from the Police Puffins? Or OAFC?

I truly, genuinely hope that threats have not been made - if things have been exaggerated etc I actually don't care. It must be awful to be the subject of any sort of a threat like that. I'd rather it be an out and out lie than there even be an ounce of truth in it

No official statement, but the tweet I reproduced was posted by a columnist from the Guardian and there has been no one along to gainsay it.

If threats have been made, then they should be investigated and punished, however, if no threats have been made, which now seems to be the case, they need to stand up and acknowledge they were mistaken.

Ched's website is still up, his apology seems quite hollow now.