Judges are usually very restrained in what they say in court. But Judge Mark Pilling was outspoken in his criticism of the conduct of a court case relating to the sacking of former Blackburn Rovers manager Henning Berg. Sitting at Manchester High Court, he described the way in which Blackburn Rovers had behaved as ‘utterly unforgiveable’.
Judges are usually very restrained in what they say in court. But Judge Mark Pilling was outspoken in his criticism of the conduct of a court case relating to the sacking of former Blackburn Rovers manager Henning Berg. Sitting at Manchester High Court, he described the way in which Blackburn Rovers had behaved as ‘utterly unforgiveable’.
He expressed serious reservations about Blackburn’s case and in particular why neither owner Anuradha Desai, her brother and another board member, and Shebby Singh, the club’s ‘global adviser’ had not produced evidence to support their claims about managing director Derek Shaw or Berg’s contract.
Rovers made the extraordinary admission in court that the club was ‘out of control’ and being run by a rogue managing director who they believe they had no power to suspend. Lawyers for the club admitted that their attempts to avoid paying former manager Berg £2.25m in wages were a ‘shambles’.
Having initially agreed to meet Berg’s demands, Blackburn Rovers changed their mind at the last minute, angering the presiding judge by filing papers after a pre-agreed deadline.
The club’s legal team laid the blame for recent troubles squarely at the feet of Shaw and claimed the club’s Indian owners were at the mercy of a managing director who was ‘in de facto control of the club and continuing to act without authority and in his own self-interest.’ Quite how this situation had been allowed to arise was not immediately clear.
The hearing continues on Monday.