Port Vale: Two-week ban for Burge the defiant
PORT Vale have suspended midfielder Ryan Burge for refusing to apologise for his midweek no-show at Bristol Rovers and subsequent Twitter outburst.
Club chairman Paul Wildes announced the punishment last night while also revealing there would be an internal inquiry into the affair.
Burge landed himself in hot water with boss Micky Adams after failing to turn up for the pre-match meal ahead of Vale's 2-0 defeat on Tuesday.
He used Twitter to claim he had been five minutes from the Memorial Stadium when he was told he was not needed.
Fixed fee sales package for any residential property, just £325 +vat. Includes listing on all major portals e.g. Rightmove & Zoopla, floorplans, photos, for sale board, etc. Call for more details.
Terms: All prices subject to VAT. Terms and Conditions apply. E&OE.
Contact: 01782 900100
Valid until: Friday, May 31 2013
He also maintained he had repeatedly tried to contact the club's management after they failed to pick him up on the way to the match.
Although Adams dismissed these claims after Tuesday's match as "absolute nonsense", Wildes said the club had been ready to work with Burge to resolve the dispute.
However, he insisted they were left with no alternative but to ban the 24-year-old when he refused to apologise for his actions.
Wildes said: "This is an unfortunate situation and one which could have been avoided. The club was keen to work with Ryan on a resolution, but he decided not to take this option.
"In relation to his use of social media, we asked Ryan to apologise for his statements on Twitter and he declined to do this. Although Ryan has now issued something on his Twitter feed, it has come too late.
"Ryan has signed our social media guidelines, along with all players, and we cannot condone behaviour which brings the club's name into disrepute.
"This has been a highly disruptive incident for everyone at the club at a critical time of the season."
News of the ban came on the eve of a tricky trip to York City (3pm) when Vale will be bidding to halt a run of five defeats in seven games that has seen them slip to third place in League Two and at risk of missing out on automatic promotion.
It also leaves them seriously short of midfield players for the trip to Bootham Crescent as skipper Doug Loft and Sam Morsy are both suspended.
Burge, pictured below, was one of Vale's outstanding performers when the club went to the summit of League Two just after Christmas, but had been sidelined in recent weeks as their poor run took hold.
The ban means he will miss both today's York game and next week's home clash with Aldershot, and with his contract expiring in the summer his future at the club must now be in some doubt.
Burge appeared to be making a conciliatory gesture last night when he took to Twitter again to declare: "I was very angry and frustrated the other night. In future I won't be using Twitter to show that. I will be using alternative options that won't cause any upset to the fans/club."
However, it is a gesture that came too late to avoid more disruption for Vale and under-fire Adams.
7 Comments
by Robnoxious
Saturday, March 16 2013, 2:05PM
“The more this keeps on running nd running does nobody any favours, both sides of the fence. To hold an enquiry into the affair, is suggesting that all the relevant factors were not to hand. Having suspended someone first does not make sense. There might be certain procedures that you follow in these cases, but the first one of commonsense has not prevailed. I am not supporting one side or the other, just what you think might be in the best interests of the club in the short and long term.
Just to make a point regarding the player concerned, he was there and committed himself to the club at it's most desperate hour of need, that must count for something, also being part of that team that is where it is today, challenging for promotion. He needs to be sat down and listened to, his frustrations of not being in the side, and what he thinks of how he has been treated, have led to his actions. People do funny things at times, they don't know who to turn to. But it is going to take a big man to apologise if he thinks he his in the right regarding the picking up and the phone calls and being 5 mins away from where they were. Before the phone call he received, not needed. The question is now. Why did you not try and contact him when, he was not there to be picked up, the point of being picked up to arriving at Bristol? Then 5 mins away was told he was not required, was this to teach him a lesson. If i am thinking that, i can understand him being upset. We will never know the truth, and it would have been better for all parties to draw a line underneath it. Without the apology. He might have even said it anyway, but being forced to say it. At the same time telling the players of their obligations on and off the pitch. All this has done is opened the door for more questions to be asked. Win or Lose today, this will remain in the background. You have shot yourselves in the foot. You should have put it to bed. If he was part of yours plans, you should have played him, surely there was a way around it by not banning him. Will you be able to play him again?
It will take a brave man to pick him now. Could you trust him? Effectively by doing what you have done, you will not be offering him another contract. You could have used the situation to your favour,he would have been playing for his future, been given the benefit of the doubt, which is no bad thing.”
by alexbarmy
Saturday, March 16 2013, 10:47AM
“Everybody had an insight into Ryan Burge's character when he was featured on Traffic Cops. In that instance it would have been simple to just calmly explain what had happened but he tried to be smart by being obstructive.”
by PhilChelt
Saturday, March 16 2013, 9:34AM
“Apologies for the repeat post. Received error message from site.”
by PhilChelt
Saturday, March 16 2013, 9:18AM
“Hanging dirty washing in public is very unpleasant and seriously embarrassing, but the manager does seemingly isolate and humiliate some players to the detriment of the club. Poor strategic thinking.”
by PhilChelt
Saturday, March 16 2013, 9:18AM
“Hanging dirty washing in public is very unpleasant and seriously embarrassing, but the manager does seemingly isolate and humiliate some players to the detriment of the club. Poor strategic thinking.”
by PhilChelt
Saturday, March 16 2013, 9:17AM
“Hanging dirty washing in public is very unpleasant and seriously embarrassing, but the manager does seemingly isolate and humiliate some players to the detriment of the club. Poor strategic thinking.”
by Dave_Eccy
Saturday, March 16 2013, 9:09AM
“Ryan, if you are angry and frustrated with your employers the best thing is to prove them wrong by your reformed attitude and efforts in training, not blabbing like some teenage girl on the bus texting her mates. (that's no reflection on teenage girls here).
You have a very privileged career here, look around the terraces of Vale park at the faces of the people who pay your wages, this isn't posh Cheltenham this is Burslem, behave with some humility, at the moment you are a very lucky boy, don't blow it.”