Joey Barton

[ramAnag]

The only counter argument from me would be rA's assertion that Joey Barton was a damn good footballer, a thug and a poor mans Roy Kean but damn good, nope you've been smoking something there rA!

Otherwise don't disagree with any of the comments - well i might have a wee dig at Af for being snarky about so called quotas - if by that he means the media generally ensuring that all those whose appear in whatever guise aren't male, pale and stale, then don't see what the issue is? It can be argued that some of a different gender, race etc. may have got there ahead of more qualified or better white males, but seeing as as has already been noted, some of those white males in the past weren't that good anyway, the reverse has equally applied.

I do enjoy women's tennis, but think that now they have equal prize money, then they should play 5 sets as per the men, other than that no quibbles with what's been said.

Don’t get me wrong, Swale. I don’t like him any more than you do and agree that Barton is a total tool, a nasty piece of work and yes...a ‘thug’.
But sometimes we have to accept that unpleasant people we dislike have talent and if I’ve been smoking something to reach my conclusion about Barton’s footballing ability alone it seems to have been something shared by the likes of Kevin Keegan, Sam Allardyce, Stuart Pearce, Neil Warnock, Steve McClaren and Harry Redknapp who possibly know more than you or I about football.