Nicky Hunt, the Bolton Wanderers right back, has avoided suspension in bizarre fashion after being sent off in the Peace Cup here. Bolton bought him out of trouble by agreeing to make a charitable donation of $1,000 (about £500) to have his ban quashed.
Hunt was dismissed during Bolton’s 1-1 draw against Seongnam Ilhwa, the Korean side, in Seoul on Thursday night for a reckless tackle on Itamar, the Brazilian striker. It was feared that he would miss their next group A match, against Chivas Guadalajara, of Mexico, in Daegu this evening.
However, the rules of the tournament allow a player to be “fined” by his club, with money going towards the development of football projects in South Korea. Hunt is not only free to play in Daegu but is also unlikely to be suspended for the start of the Barclays Premier League season next month.
The English FA will act only if it receives a copy of the referee’s report and it is understood that the Korean FA is happy that the matter has been resolved. “We got a call from the organising committee to say that Nicky’s red card had been nullified,” Sammy Lee, the Bolton manager, said. “It means that he can play in the rest of the tournament.”
Lee’s concerns have switched to Ricardo Gardner and Stelios Gianna-kopoulos. Gardner may have torn a hamstring against Seongnam but Gian-nakopoulos is expected to return after suffering a calf strain in the warm-up.
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A below-strength Reading opened their group B campaign with a 1-0 defeat by River Plate at the Big Bird Stadium in Suwon last night. The Argentine side took the lead when Matias Abelairas curled in a first-half free kick. Reading improved markedly after the break, but Kevin Doyle had an equaliser disallowed for offside.
- The Serbian FA has been fined £16,000 by Uefa for the behaviour of its players and supporters during the European Under21 Championship match against England in Nijmegen last month. England players, including Nedum Onuoha, were racially abused by Serbia supporters and trouble broke out between players at the end of the match, which England won 2-0. The FA was fined £2,000 for the “improper conduct” of England players.