Sunderland have made a series of major errors of judgment, all the more astonishing given that the club's CEO is a solicitor.

What Sunderland should have done immediately after his arrest, in light of the seriousness of the charges and regardless of what they did or didn't know, is suspended Johnson on full pay until the trial. This would be the common HR best practice in such an instance. Furthermore, given that the accuser was one of their supporters who first met Johnson on the club's premises, they also had a duty of care to her (unless you think club's have no responsibility for the well being and safety of their supporters.)

It seems very, very clear that Sunderland simply concluded that they needed Johnson on the pitch to help them avoid relegation and any moral or legal issues be damned.

What adds insult to injury is that they were in possession of all the texts and had an admission from Johnson he had kissed the girl. Whether or not he told them he intended to plead guilty is completely irrelevant; as a solicitor Margaret Byrne must have realised from the text messages that he was almost certain to be found guilty of grooming and as he told the club he had kissed the girl they must have known he would likely be convicted of that charge, whether he pled guilty or not.

Furthermore, once Byrne was aware of that fact she was in a position where, if she had been called as a witness (which was likely had Johnson not changed his plea on the first two counts) she would either have had to admit she knew of his guilt all along or deny it at the risk of perjuring herself (and, thus, being struck off.) Which rather suggests that Johnson's change of plea didn't come as a total surprise to her at all but she'd achieved her purpose (avoiding relegation) by that stage and could then deny everything and push Johnson under the bus. Which Sunderland have duly done.

A truly revolting club -- at least at an executive level. Sam is the perfect fit for them. I feel sorry for the supporters and I, too, am amazed that in view of their actions Sunderland are getting off reasonably lightly. Byrne should have resigned the moment Johnson was convicted and the fact that she is still in her job three days later tells you all you need to know about Ellis Short's moral position.