A quick-thinking football reporter helped his local team avoid a hefty fine by taking the team sheet to the referee’s office before a match – while the team were stranded in traffic.
Luke Cawdell from the Medway Messenger was on the ball before Gillingham FC’s League One clash with Luton Town FC last Saturday and handed the list of players to referee Andy Penn with seconds to go before the 2pm deadline.
Teams are required to hand in a list of players an hour before every match, but Gillingham were helpless on their team bus.
Cawdell answered a plea from Gills chairman Paul Scally, who was also delayed.
“I had a race on my hands to get to the ground by the deadline, but thanks to the help of the staff at Luton, I was there at the referee’s door bang on 2pm – I even beat Luton’s assistant manager to it,” Cawdell said.
Gillingham manager Ronnie Jepson said the team’s late arrival “just about sums us up our start to the season,” after his team suffered a 3-1 loss, their fourth straight defeat.
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