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Ref: Successful legal action by Fergus McCann/Celtic v Jim Farry/SFA over deliberate delay in registration of Jorge Cadete
Date: 1996
Legal action completed: 1999
Events
Despite being signed prior to the transfer deadline, the S.F.A. deliberately delayed processing Cadete’s registration in time for a Scottish Cup tie against Rangers at Hampden, and he ended up missing six games in total.
Following a complaint and then legal action from Celtic chairman Fergus McCann, SFA chief Jim Farry was eventually relieved of his duties after being found guilty of deliberately holding back Jorge Cadete’s registration by a committee of arbitration almost three years after the event.
Fergus was heavily criticised upto the judgement, with many espousing cliches and cartoonish charactures about Fergus, and made him an easy target. Fergus though was vindicated as he won this, and there are many in retrospect who were left with egg on their face after this, and that even included certain pockets of Celtic supporters who had based their judgements on the mainstream media articles.
In January 1997 in a crunch league match with Rangers at Ibrox Stadium, Cadete was yet again the victim of controversial action. The striker netted to make the game 2-2 but the linesman ruled the goal offside. Television evidence went on to prove the goal was in fact legitimate. Celtic went on to lose 3-1 thanks to a Jorg Albertz free kick and Erik Bo Andersen double for Rangers.
Many Celtic fans have taken this as vindication that there was extreme bias against Celtic by authorities, and Jim Farry had been charactured repeatedly as some Kafka-eque bureaucrat. The truth is somewhere in between. Jim Farry was actually a hard working mandarin for the SFA, and his biggest failing was the lack of reform of the SFA. He wasn’t the only problem here, and the whole SFA needed an overhaul. Sadly it hasn’t still happened, and there have been various commentators on both sides who like to take potshots over this episode at the other.
The SFA seriously messed up, and should have acknowledged this immediately. It is a modern age and old school masterly gentleman agreements are no longer valid.
On the other hand, maybe Tom Crampsey (journalist) got it right when he asked:
‘Does the suspension hint at something darker: the deliberate obstructionism at which Celtic themselves have seemed to point?’
If the errors were more due to incompetence, bureaucracy or staff error, then should Farry really have been right to have lost his role? Or as many Celtic fans believe, was this all part of a unwritten policy of bias against Celtic? Rangers were going for nine-in-a-row, and they were the establishment’s favoured son. Celtic were a shambles for many years until Fergus McCann arrived but this successful action was a step back to respectability.
For McCann’s tenacity, you have to admire his courage and strength through all this. He was guided by a professional work ethic and personal moral code, and his victory had very great ramifications. It was finally good to see Celtic get on top for a change. Prior boards preferred committee meetings and sit-downs, but as history has shown, this is too often an inefficient and often crony system.
For Jim Farry, he may have deserved the consequences that came with the final decisions, but really he was not the only problem, and it could be fairly said that he was a fall guy for others in the SFA.
Cadete missed the following matches:
February
24th, Celtic 4-0 Partick Thistle, Premier Division
March
2nd, Celtic 4-0 Heart of Midlothian, Premier Division
10th, Celtic 2-1 Dundee United, Scottish Cup
17th, Rangers 1-1 Celtic, Premier Division
23rd, Motherwell 0-0 Celtic, Premier Division
April
7th, Rangers 2-1 Celtic, Scottish Cup
Timetable of events that led to Farry’s downfall . . . 
February 26, 1996
Valid registration form submitted by Celtic to the SFA plus valid contractual agreement between Celtic and Jorge Cadete. No objection at any stage taken by the SFA to the content of that form and the agreement. Since player registered with the Portuguese Football Association international clearance required under FIFA Regulations.
March 7, 1996
International Transfer Certificate (ITC) received, by fax, from Portuguese FA. Confirmed to Celtic by fax from SFA on March 8. No indication that SFA has any concerns with ITC.
March 12, 1996
Original of ITC received by post from Portuguese FA in identical terms to fax received on March 7. FIFA issue a fax to the SFA advising that the ITC was issued by the Portuguese FA under the instructions of FIFA so that the player could be registered in Scotland.
The SFA fail to process the registration of the player.
Had the SFA been following their usual procedure the registration of the player would have been given effect to from February 26, 1996.
March 12-23, 1996
Mr Farry regards the ITC received on March 7 and 12 as being invalid and will not register the player until Celtic have resolved a compensation dispute with Sporting Lisbon and the conditions which the SFA consider are attached to the ITC are removed. Celtic receive no communication advising why the SFA regard the ITC as invalid.
March 23, 1996
Celtic have entered into agreement with Sporting Lisbon and Jorge Cadete has separately entered into another agreement with Sporting Lisbon. Celtic have to
conclude a new agreement with the player. A second set of player registration papers are submitted by Celtic to the SFA incorporating a full professional application form and the new player agreement.
March 27, 1996
The SFA fax Celtic refusing to register on the basis of the application forms submitted on March 23, 1996 alleging that there is a clause in the player
agreement to which they take exception. A clause in substantially identical terms was included in the player agreement submitted on February 26, 1996 and no objection was taken at any time by the SFA to that same clause.
March 29, 1996
Fax received by the SFA from FIFA advising that the ITC was valid from March 7 and that the issue of any contractual dispute regarding the player status with Sporting Lisbon was irrelevant. The SFA Executive Committee meets, “deems” international clearance to have been granted, and requires the player agreement submitted on March 23 to be amended by deleting the clause objected to on March 27 and a further two clauses not objected to on March 27. Celtic are given no opportunity to make representations to the SFA executive regarding the position at, or prior to, the meeting on March 29.
During a telephone conversation between an officer of Celtic and Mr Farry, Celtic advised that they would be required to submit a third application form and player agreement with clauses deleted. According to the evidence given on behalf of Celtic, an agreement was reached during the course of that telephone conversation between Mr Farry and the officer of Celtic that the registration of the player would be given effect to on March 22 on the basis of the third form which would be submitted either later on March 29 or 30.
Mr Farry denies any such agreement. Celtic require registration by no later than March 23 in order to ensure that Jorge Cadete is available for selection to play in the Scottish Cup Semi-Final tie with Rangers on April 7. No evidence that SFA executive advised of this circumstance at meeting on March 29.
March 30, 1996
Third form and agreement submitted to SFA. Mr Farry refuses to register with effect from March 22, insists on amendments to the third player agreement, which are effected that day, and proceeds to effect the registration on March 30. Celtic accept the position because the Scottish Football League registration deadline expires on March 31 and if Celtic do not accept registration on March 30, Cadete will not be available to play in any league matches in Scotland for the remainder of the 1995/96 season.
March 30 to end of 1995/1996 Season
Cadete plays in all remaining games apart from cup semi-final tie on April 7. Celtic lose 2-1. Cadete, although fit, cannot play because of the date of his SFA registration.
1996/97 Season
Cadete scores 33 goals in 43 games.
October 7, 1997
FIFA write to the SFA, following SFA inquiry, advising the SFA that any conditions that may be attached to an ITC are to be regarded as null and void and that an ITC is required to be accepted as a valid ITC from the date specified on the ITC. In the case of Jorge Cadete this was March 7, 1996.
Celtic’s Position
1. On the basis of the first valid application for registration, submitted on February 26, 1996, registration of Cadete should have been given effect from February 26, when international clearance by way of the ITC was received by the SFA on March 7.
2. On the basis of the second valid application form and player agreement submitted on March 23, 1996, Cadete should have been registered with effect from March 23, since the SFA were in receipt of a valid set of player registration documents and the ITC received on March 7.
3. On the basis of the agreement entered into by telephone on March 29, 1996, Jorge Cadete ought to have been registered with effect from March 22, 1996 on submission of the third application and player agreement on March 30.
4. The SFA have now accepted that as a consequence of failures on the part of James Farry Esq., the registration process was not carried out as it ought to have been and that the player ought to have been registered by no later than March 23, 1996, thereby enabling him to play in the Scottish Cup semi-final against Rangers.
Quotes
‘He must recognise the rules of the game were not established to be so blatantly disregarded by a man who knows virtually nothing of the structure of Scottish football.’
Alan Davidson (Evening Times journalist) on Fergus McCann prior to the successful outcome for Fergus McCann v Farry, an example of the mounting criticism against him, but Fergus McCann was proved right.
‘The decision has been taken to dismiss Mr Farry for gross misconduct.’
SFA announcement on 8 March 1999
‘I was there when he was giving evidence and his position, which was quite amazing, was that he was right, his executive committee were wrong, FIFA were wrong. He did not agree with his own assistants and he maintained that black was white. If I had been his counsel, I would have done the same thing, brought it to an end as soon as possible.’
Fergus McCann
“Does the suspension [of Farry] hint at something darker: the deliberate obstructionism at which Celtic themselves have seemed to point?”
Tom Crampsey, Scottish Football journalist, historian and academic.
‘We simply do not know the degree of incompetence, or malfeasance, or bloody-minded obduracy, or whatever else your imagination cares to light on for we are bogged down by conjecture. So, although we know what the outcome was, what is the actual depth of Farry’s alleged culpability?’
Archie MacPherson, Scottish football journalist (6 March, 2000)