Sam Allardyce has revealed that he was not made aware that Sunderland officials had seen documents in which Adam Johnson had admitted kissing and grooming a 15-year-old girl, and admitted to feeling shocked and repulsed by the former England winger’s conviction for child sex offences.
Johnson continued to represent the Barclays Premier League club while awaiting trial, playing 28 games in all competitions after his arrest in March last year, but Allardyce confirmed that he would not have selected the player, who is facing up to ten years in prison, if he had known that Johnson would plead guilty at Bradford crown court.
Having initially maintained his innocence on three counts of sexual activity and one of grooming, Johnson changed his plea to guilty on two charges before the trial began, leading Sunderland to dismiss the 28-year-old, whose contract was due to expire at the end of this season.
He was subsequently found guilty of another count of sexual activity and cleared of a similar charge.
It was stated in court, however, that Johnson and his lawyers met Margaret Byrne, the Sunderland chief executive, on May 4 and told her “everything” about his contact with the girl.
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Having been suspended by the club after his arrest, Johnson was reinstated 16 days later after discussions with the Professional Footballers’ Association and after receiving independent legal advice.
As pressure continued to grow on Byrne over her handling of the matter, detective inspector Aelfwynn Sampson, from Durham police, the lead investigator in the case, said last night that she had met the Irishwoman, who has a background in criminal law, on March 2 last year. “They were given detail that [Johnson] had met the girl and sexual activity took place,” Sampson said.
While Sunderland have insisted that Johnson’s employment would have been “terminated immediately” had they known he would change his plea, they have been criticised by supporters, children’s and sexual abuse charities and politicians for allowing him to play on.
“At the centre of this, we have a 15-year-old girl who was an avid Sunderland fan and a massive fan of Adam Johnson,” Sampson said. “She describes him as her idol. She’ll want to know why he was allowed back on the pitch.”
Asked if he had been told that club officials had allegedly seen documents that pointed to Johnson’s guilt, Allardyce replied at his regular press briefing yesterday: “No. I’m the manager, why would I know that?”
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Pressed on whether he should have been given that information, Allardyce said: “I can’t answer that,” before journalists were told by the club’s press officer to “move on”. Would he have selected Johnson in those circumstances?
“I don’t answer hypothetical questions,” Allardyce said.
Appointed in October, Allardyce, 61, only discovered that Johnson, who continued to play for his hometown team until the weekend before the trial, had pleaded guilty when he watched coverage of the trial on television.
“The information to me was that he was going to plead not guilty to all charges and that was why we continued to let him train and play for us,” he said.
“We were all at the football club stunned and shocked when we heard a guilty plea come out I was sat at home when it came on the news and I was just gobsmacked because as far as we were concerned, it was going to be not guilty on all charges. He’s gone through the process and the process has proven that he’s guilty. Now he has to serve his sentence, and there’s not a lot of sympathy here for Adam Johnson.
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“I’m hugely disappointed in Adam Johnson and what has happened. But my sympathies don’t lie with him, they lie with the victim and the family. As far as I know, Adam was pleading not guilty all the way through from the day I arrived. Obviously this incident had happened well before I got here.”
Allardyce was repeatedly asked about the involvement of Byrne, who rarely speaks in public. “I’m trying to take some responsibility on behalf of what has happened with it to answer some questions,” he said. “The difficulty is that I am not a lawyer, I’m a football manager. I’m not an academic and I don’t want to slip up with any of the answers I might give.”
With Sunderland facing a relegation struggle, Allardyce conceded that an unprecedented situation has made it difficult to prepare his team. “We’ve all known what’s been going on regarding the outrage from it,” he said. “It’s a hugely difficult situation and one I’ve never found myself in before and frankly wouldn’t like to find myself in again.”
The sense of betrayal on Wearside stretches to the dressing room and other areas of the club. “We all feel a lot of sympathy for the victim and the family,” Allardyce said. “That has now hopefully given them some peace and they can now get on with their lives and we can get on with our football.”
In a statement last night, the FA said: “The FA’s safeguarding team spoke with the club in April 2015. Adam Johnson did not have any roles with the club involving a position of trust with children and was not involved in their community schemes.”
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‘It’s not nice to have worked with a man like him’
Transcript An edited account of what Sam Allardyce said at his press conference yesterday
Journalist Sam, did you feel duped by Adam Johnson?
Allardyce I think I was just waiting for the fact that the call was going to come and we were going to dismiss him. I couldn’t see any other option for the football club. I waited for the call. Got the call and said, ‘yes, let’s . . . right, fine, we’ll move on and get on with our football the best we can.’
Journalist You didn’t know about the intention to plead guilty, did you know there were documents that suggested Adam Johnson was guilty.
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Allardyce No. I’m the manager, why would I know that?
Journalist Should you have been given that information?
Sunderland official Guys. We’ll move on from there please.
Allardyce I can’t answer that.
Journalist You’re a family man. It must be revulsion, disgust.
Allardyce Absolutely. You know it’s not nice to know that you’ve worked with a player, and he’s ended up being found guilty of that offence. Like I said we have no sympathy for him. All our sympathies lie with the victim and her family. He has to take whatever sentence he gets on the chin and we have to move on as a football club.
Journalist Where is the name of the football club today?
Allardyce I can’t answer that.
Journalist Should Margaret Byrne [Sunderland’s chief executive] not be here to answer the questions?
Allardyce I don’t know, it’s not my responsibility.
Journalist On May 4, the club had everything and Adam Johnson was allowed to play.
Official That is not Sam’s question to answer.
Allardyce I’m not comfortable answering any questions on Adam Johnson. I’m trying to take some responsibility on behalf of what has happened with it to answer some questions. The difficulty is that I am not a lawyer, I’m a football manager. I’m not an academic and I don’t want to slip up with any of the answers I might give because it can make headlines, ‘the managers says’, so I can only answer as much as I can answer and I move on.
Journalist How difficult has it been for you to prepare a team?
Allardyce Massive, because we’ve all known what’s been going on regarding the outrage from it. All I’ve had to do is try to focus the players not to be distracted by the outrage and concentrate on their football. It’s a hugely difficult situation to be in and one I’ve never found myself in before and quite frankly wouldn’t like to find myself in again. From a player’s point of view, keep them focused and obviously they will have kept their own eyes peeled on what they’ve heard and what they’ve read. They are all as disappointed as we are.
Journalist A football question, would you have played him if you’d known about the documents?
Allardyce It’s a hypothetical question and I don’t answer hypothetical questions.