Players’ union boss livid over UK fixer’s Irish boast

Ireland’s players’ union leader is angry about recent unsubstantiated media reports suggesting football matches are being rigged in this country.

PFAI general secretary Stephen McGuinness says he has never encountered match-fixing in the domestic game, and was livid when an alleged fixer was quoted in an undercover media sting operation in England last week claiming he could “do” games in Ireland.

“I was fuming, absolutely fuming because I just thought, ‘here we go, they are going to nail our league here’, list the league with no evidence,” said McGuinness. “Some bloke in England sits in a room and says games in Ireland are rigged. That’s disgraceful, absolutely disgraceful.