KUALA TERENGGANU: Settle it amicably or see you in court! This is the choice given by sacked Terengganu coach Peter Butler (pic) to the Terengganu FA.
The 46-year-old, who submitted his written appeal to FA secretary Abdullah Salleh yesterday, prefers an amicable settlement to his recent contract termination.
But the Englishman is willing to go to court to prove that the association had erred in ending his contract after its disciplinary committee found him guilty of speaking to the media without the management's permission and ungentlemanly conduct regarding the treatment of goalkeeper Sharbinee Allawee Ramlee.
For the first offence, the Halifax-born Butler received a six-month suspension and a RM4,000 fine while his next month's salary was cut by 15 per cent for berating and pushing Sharbinee on the sideline when he substituted the goalkeeper for scoring an own goal in the home match against Kedah on Sept 1.
The former West Ham United player, who still has 15 months left on his contract, said he had submitted a four-page written appeal as he felt the grounds which led to the disciplinary action and the notice of Termination of Contract that followed were unfair.
"I was slapped with a six-month month suspension for talking to the press about my players and that is baffling as I have talked to the press about my boys before and I have never been reprimanded,"said Butler.
"There are other things, too, that I have included in my written appeal and I hope the FA will be able to reconsider its decisions against me and immediately set aside the suspension, the fine and the termination of my contract."
Meanwhile, Butler who also met with top officials of T-Team yesterday, refused to talk about his possible appointment as the new coach of the Kuala Terengganu Football Association team.
"Any statement will have to come from T-Team as I have been asked not to say anything about my meeting with them today (yesterday)," he said. T-Team assistant manager Zainal Abidin Hussin, who confirmed the morning meeting with Butler, also declined to comment.
But a T-Team official revealed that it was just a preliminary meeting to get to know each other better.
"Butler told those at the meeting about his appeal to the Terengganu FA and they thought it would be a good idea for him to settle that first," said Zainal.
- New Straits Times
