WELLINGBOROUGH TOWN chairman Martin Potton has been banned from attending five matches and fined £75 after being found guilty of making sexist remarks about a female referee.
Potton was alleged to have made the comments during his club’s game against AFC Rushden & Diamonds on April 11 of last year.
Diamonds won the game against their landlords 7-0 and it was claimed a frustrated Potton said referee Mary Harmer wasn’t fit enough to officiate a women’s game, let alone a men’s one.
Lindsay England, founder of equality group Just A Ball Game, was at the United Counties League Premier game and reported the Town chief to the Football Association.
She said: “Just after half time I was out on the decking watching the game and within a few minutes of the second half, Wellingborough were 7-0 down.
“A gentleman decided to say that it was the referee’s fault his side was losing 7-0 because she was female. He carried on and was going on about women getting in everywhere and said wherever you turn, you can’t enjoy yourself without women being there and being in charge. I was really shocked to find out it was the chairman of the opposition team.”
Potton was banned for the maximum five games by an FA disciplinary commission, fined £75 and ordered to attend a mandatory education lesson after being found guilty of using derogatory and insulting language towards an official.
Despite the ruling, Potton insists he is innocent, saying: “I deny all the charges but was found guilty in my absence as I was denied the opportunity of a personal hearing.”
Harmer, meanwhile, told The BBC: “I didn’t find out about the comments until a few weeks after when I was contacted by the County FA.
“I was so focused on getting the decisions right on the pitch that I very rarely hear the crowd. Those sort of comments make me want to work harder and prove that women can be good referees and sometimes even better than the men.
“Those sort of comments are part of the past. The game is changing and I think in five or so years’ time people will just see us as a referee and not a female referee.”
