Well, the fact that there is a fine makes a mockery of the subjectivity argument. The only debate then is the level of punishment. The cost of a week's wages for a single player is no deterrent. It needs to be proportional to the overall gain or involve points deductions.

You've got a point there. But I don't expect any of the teams up at the top of the table would have had differential treatment. We weren't good enough to beat Liverpool with our strongest team, while Huddersfield are certainly good enough to beat a crap 10 men Birmingham and chose not to. Again, the rule about playing your strongest side is there for a reason. It's still morally wrong - even if Rovers did it. But, again again, I'd be mad if we threw away momentum going into the play-offs. Resting players isn't an exact science. Truly hope that Huddersfield miss out. Maybe I should put a bet on them just to make sure.

Pretty sure (I've not checked) that even Sam never made 10 changes.

The league and FA set limits all the time. Squad size Number of subs Number of loanees from one club Number of loanees in a match day squad It's reasonable to rest four or five players. Six changes would be a lot. Anything else isn't your strongest side. I expect teams would just invent injuries to players to get round it. Sadly, there is no integrity in football. When it became a squad game with more players not on the field than on it, this problem was going to happen. Teams can now cherry pick which games they want to compete in. It makes corruption very likely and integrity of the game is shot. Money rules. The only way it can be combatted is for the punishments to be means tested. If Huddersfield go up then they lose half of their PL income in fines. They certainly wouldn't do it then.

Funny that Redknapp didn't agree with you. He very much felt the need to remind Wagner. He will probably have similar mind games against Bristol next week. "Fantastic job they've done. Nothing left to prove. One or two of their boys will be tired after a long season and I'm sure me old pal Johnno will want to have a look at some of his youngsters ahead of the Summer. Well, I would." Sorry Mike you are wrong with this one. 10 changes is not reasonable. Not even if their fans paid reserve team prices and it was advertised as such. The rule was written for a reason.

Will Huddersfield play the same 10 this weekend? Because any argument about freshness of his entire squad demands it. Also, if only a minority of the 10 players make the play-off games then there is no argument that it wasn't a weakened side. I guarantee if Redknapp had been on the receiving end of that then the papers and TV would be talking about nothing else.

The rule needs removing then as it's pointless if there is no incentive. Deliberately not competing in a match is fundamentally the worst crime in football. Resting up to four or five players can be said to be entirely reasonable in these days of 7 subs. Making 10 changes means starting players who weren't even worthy of a place on the bench the previous week. If they miss out on millions then they can hold Wagner entirely responsible. A season is 46 games long but the difference between success and failure is moments like this. I hope he gets his comeuppance with a poor but decisive decision against him in their play-off matches.

Couldn't disagree more. Thats actually an incredible post 'having slept on it' and presumably digested all the facts - including the rule book.

Resting one or two? Yes, ok. Resting TEN?? No, that's throwing a game for one but it also loses something from your own form. Like I've said, let's see if he rests them ALL for two consecutive weekends and then bounces straight back to form afterwards. Nothing will convince me that Huddersfield haven't simply cheated Rovers and Forest yesterday.

Wow! Yes, we are where we are this season because of Venkys. But we are where we are today because of Redknapp tapping up another manager and, if quotes attributed to him in the press are accurate, 'encouraging him' to break the rules.

Disagree. I'd be furious with 10 changes unless our squad was the Championship equivalent of Chelsea. The play-offs are about momentum.

Let's see if they rest the same players next Sunday...

Good find JH. Nothing will be done, of course, but putting out a non-competitive team makes a mockery of the league football concept.

http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/15255775._I_don___t_know_whether_there_are_integrity_issues_with_the_league____Rovers_head_coach_Tony_Mowbray_questions_Huddersfield_Town_s_team_selection/ Glad he's said it. Mind you, it would be just like the FA and EFL to censure Mowbray over his comments. I wish Huddersfield nothing but ill. Tin pot club.

It was a massive improvement. Has editing posts also been changed?

If Huddersfield have any designs on winning the play-offs then they will know they need to take some momentum into them. To "rest" and rollever now could backfire. Of course, I wouldn't blame Huddersfield either way. Keeping Coyle for as long as we did killed our chances. The fact that Senior waited until after the transfer window closed to get rid of him showed how out of touch he was and that was another month wasted. Assessing our squad and saying (whether he believed it or not) that there was no 'value' was another example of how badly run we are. Is there no value in staying in this division. Having a target who couldn't even sign due to work permit issues showed a lack of professionalism. More time wasted. How can one club be so unlucky or badly advised or mistaken or confused?

@Michael Doherty are there some specific questions you are putting to the sports minister? It would be good to know what vision she has for football club ownership over the next decade or so: will capitalism reign supreme or will there be any balance in terms of mandated part-ownership by fans a la Germany. Football is our national sport and our football clubs are community centres in their respective towns and cities.

Looks like it was taken down within seconds Isgak.

Not heard that one for a while. The mainstay at the moment is "your support is effing shot". Hard to disagree really. We can't even muster a reply.

Enjoying the love-in cos we have a decent away fan posting. I disliked Villa for several seasons but that's only because we kept drawing them in the FA Cup ever season for about 5 years! (At least it felt like it). As it is they are just another Championship team - albeit one screwed over by foreign owners too. No chance of uniting fans between clubs against the authorities, as Matty mentioned early. It's not necessarily a tribal thing more just self-interest. Beside we don't even want to united as a fanbase when it's happening to us - in a worse way than most others - every sodding day.

The Ton Mowbri lyrics on this thread are genius I have to say. Keep it up. Gallows humour is about all we have left.

As long as things like this happen, players will continue to cheat and feel it was justified. It's about time goals were awarded for handball on the line.

Looks like the seaside.

It would be fantastic if one of the early aims of the Trust was to draw on the talent pool offered by the FF, the Ewood WMC group and the Action Group. One central organisation, or at least a coalition reinvigorating the KGH opportunity, ready for when the time comes and we need to all be pulling in the same direction.

His salary?