Martin Dowey: Ex-players must be given FIFA chance

Firstly, Scarborough Athletic have been handed a huge ray of light after Scarborough Borough Council approved the club’s move to Weaponness.

It has been eight years since Scarborough FC last kicked a competitive ball here, and now it seems set that the new generation of fans can watch their own Darren Foremans, Tommy Mooneys and Gary Bennetts.

There has also been positive news from the high table of FIFA as well.

Sepp Blatter has finally fallen on his sword, another move that is possibly eight or so years too late.

Now maybe the governing body of football can have a football-minded person in charge, rather than a man whose previous sporting achievements were being secretary of the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation and a director of sports timing.

The fact that Blatter has lasted so long in the job raises questions about the consitution of the whole federation.

Transparency is something that you’ll never get at that level of sport, as the FBI are currently finding out, but if that is the case you need somebody who knows the game and can make the correct decisions.

People whinge about referees making bad decisions because they never played the game, so how did Blatter manage to control the game when the same is true.

Michel Platini has been overlooked on a handful of occasions, yet he has a list of honours as long as anyone’s arm.

Surely footballers and ex-footballers know what is right for the game, so surely FIFA have to put one in charge.

According to bookies Platini is fortunately the favourite to take the throne, with Luis Figo and David Ginola also up there.

The favourite though is Prince Ali bin Al-Hussein of Jordan. A king’s son and a brigadier in the Jordanian Armed Forces.

But has this man ever kicked a competitive ball? No, but according to Wikipedia, he did once excel at wrestling.

We are yet to see if his heavily-predicted appointment will be a success, if not I’m sure Hulk Hogan will be waiting in the wings.