Forest Green strengthened their grip on the League Two promotion race yesterday with a fine 4-2 win against Leyton Orient in London, but the game has been overshadowed by a controversy involving their manager, Mark Cooper.
The ‘little club on the hill’ is often portrayed as the darlings of the media with their green ethics, vegan menus and a different approach to the world of football. However, in the course of their rise from the National League to the League Two promotion race, they’ve managed to tread on a few toes.
He’s been investigated for being involved in confrontations with rival fans, had BBC interviews cut short through swearing and linked with other incidents on social media. Outside of Nailsworth, neither he nor the club have always been as popular as you might think.
That looks like taking a drastic and justifiable turn for the worst this weekend after Leyton Orient manager Ross Embleton’s claims. We’re actually so disgusted with the allegations that we’re not going to reproduce them here out of respect.
Forest Green have, expectedly, denied the allegations and in doing so have perhaps made things even worse. Chairman Dale Vince put out a brief statement effectively claiming Ross Embleton is lying which, given the emotive subject they’re falling out about, is a tough stance for football to take.
Quite what happens next is anyone’s guess; Leyton Orient might complain to the FA, the referee#s report might well include mention of the incident as Cooper was booked in the scenes that followed, or it might be brushed under the carpet.
One thing is for sure; when the two teams meet again in February, nothing will have been forgotten at Brisbane Road, nor perhaps by the wider football fan as you’ll see from the comments below.
https://twitter.com/MarkatCIFF/status/1198300972126294016
https://twitter.com/markcf83/status/1198301646809419778
https://twitter.com/HeritageRoofing/status/1198358626097868804
https://twitter.com/JamesClark180/status/1198381512082755589
https://twitter.com/lurkinhead/status/1198324318595407877
https://twitter.com/1977Ant/status/1198350114940698632
https://twitter.com/WellsyOs/status/1198385859344707585
https://twitter.com/lofc1978/status/1198289281435029505
