Midlands football league boss suspended and fined £100 over n-word slur

A football league boss has been suspended and fined after using a racist term at a meeting.

Neil Juggins, chief executive of the West Midlands (Regional) League, was overheard using the phrase ‘n***** in the woodpile’ at a league summit, leaving club representatives stunned and appalled.

He is now facing calls to quit from club representatives after accepting a charge that he used inappropriate language.

Around 100 people were in the room at the time when the chief used the n-word and he was subsequently reported to the Football Association.

Mr Juggins was suspended from all football-related activity for five months and fined £100 after being summoned to an FA hearing.

He has also been ordered to attend an education course within four months.

Mr Juggins accepted an FA charge that he used abusive and/or insulting words, which was said to be an ‘aggravated breach’ as it ‘included a reference to ethnic origin and/or colour and/or race’.

However, his wife Wendy, who is the league’s chairman, said the chief executive intends to appeal the length of the suspension but declined to comment further.

Ben Coates, aged 41, secretary at Wellington Amateurs, who play in the league, was in the room when the remark was made and insisted Mr Juggins must now resign as chief executive.

He said: “Mr Juggins must step down, his position is untenable. A case of this ilk has been proven and he shouldn’t be running a football league.

“He needs to step down and resign and I will be calling for that over the next few days.

“Being 41 and not in the age bracket of Mr Juggins, I had never heard the phrase before. I didn’t want to believe what I’d heard but I knew what he had said.”

Mr Coates suggested if the chief executive was to remain in the role it could be damaging for the division.

He said: “This is not going to help ethnic minorities want to play in the league. We want the best players, no matter what their race, religion or creed.

"How can we encourage people to play in the league when he has said something such as this?”

Wednesfield manager Dean Gill condemned the words used but said he did not believe Mr Juggins was racist.

He said: “The language he used was wrong and there is no place for it in the game but hand on my heart I don’t think he meant it in a racist way.

"It was an incredible statement he made. It is wrong and he upset a lot of people.”

Mr Gill stopped short of calling for the chief executive to quit, but added: "Everybody's role should always be under scrutiny. People like himself should have the highest ethical standards."