Ex England U18 captain Courtney Meppen-Walter was found guilty of causing death by dangerous driving.
Written by Craig Lucock
I felt the need to make this post as i have been particularly aggravated over the past few weeks with the slating of our (Carlisle United) decision to sign Courtney Meppen-Walter. The reason why there has been so much disagreement regarding him is because, in February 2013, Meppen-Walter caused the death of a brother and sister as he drove at around twice the speed limit in Central Manchester.
Now, before i try to convey any points here, i must make it clear that i do not, by any means, condone what he did. He was foolish, perhaps he was showing off to his friends, he was 18 at the time of the accident, very young and possibly immature and perhaps his actions upon release were not the smartest.
He is no saint, but he is human, we all make mistakes in our lives. Unfortunately for Courtney, due to the fact that he is a footballer, he is quite often in the limelight, which draws some attention which perhaps would not be drawn in other professions. If this lad was in the bricklaying or plumbing business and he caused death by dangerous driving, would regular people be phoning up firms around the country, demanding they didn’t employ him? I highly doubt it.
Why should he be forced to learn a completely new trade because of one fatal error? Football is what he has trained to do more or less his whole life, i see no reason why he should be banned from playing football altogether, again, this attention and debate is because he is a footballer. The lad has shown in interviews that he is remorseful, he regrets what he did, in my opinion, people should be judged not on the mistakes they make but whether or not they learn from their mistakes. Meppen-Walter looks like he has learned from his mistakes, while that may not bring any peace to the family of the siblings who perished in the car crash, it says something about his character. I do not mean to sound heartless here, but the family criticising the club and demanding he never plays football again won’t bring them back.
Also, in my opinion, i believe that Meppen-Walter is a victim of circumstance. Many people, footballers or not, have gone over the speed limit before, be it slightly or completely over the top, but the big factor that most people look at is the consequence, especially if you’re a footballer. If the car had never pulled out in front of him, we’d be talking about someone speeding and driving dangerously and i doubt anyone would care, instead we’re talking about deaths and instantly everyone is on his case. He did nothing (intentionally) what anyone else who has sped didn’t do, but due to the circumstance and consequences, he gets the spotlight for the wrong reasons, it’s gone from a side article which barely anyone would read to a front page new story.
One of the reasons why fans of Carlisle have criticised this decision is because it disgraces Carlisle as a ‘family club’. Now, i don’t like saying bad things about my own team, but i assure you, there have been plenty of instances on the pitch which aren’t suited for a family club at all. The most recent coming against Boreham Wood, where two or three of our players walked over to distraught Boreham Wood players and taunted them following a last minute winner that Carlisle had scored (There’s reasons why Carlisle’s players did that, but that’s off topic). If people are going to point out that Meppen-Walter is a ‘role model’ then they have to look at that and wonder if that’s what they want their kids to act like. Younger people, should (and generally do) idolise players for their work on the pitch, not what happens off of it.
A couple of people that i know of have made the decision to not return to Brunton Park while Meppen-Walter is playing for us. That, in my opinion, is a ridiculous course of action, at a time where the club desperately needs fans through the gates to garner a bit of revenue, no one man is bigger than the club, that is what is said when players get a big head and start demanding things, so why are people allowing one man to influence their decision of whether to turn up to games or not?
From a footballing perspective, this move could be a great one for Carlisle, after a strong performance against Brentford, he’s shown that he’s still a very capable footballer, if Carlisle can get him tied down to a long term contract, then there is the chance that they will make millions off of him. Fans really should think what’s best for the club in my opinion, and from what i’ve seen so far, this IS what is best for the club.
Goalkeeper Luke McCormick was sentenced to 7 years and 4 months for causing death by dangerous driving and excess alcohol
The second footballer which i wish to talk about, albeit a bit more briefly, is Luke McCormick, who currently plays for Plymouth Argyle. On the 6th of October 2008, he was found guilty of death by dangerous driving and excess alcohol and was sentenced to 7 years and 4 months in prison. McCormick served just under 4 years of this sentence. McCormick caused the deaths of two young children.
Now, while i think this case is slightly worse, due to the alcohol involvement, i still don’t think that he deserves the scrutiny that he comes under by some fans. While what he did may have deserved a longer sentence, he served his time, it was not his fault that he was released early, that is purely down to the justice system. The family of the deceased did not appeal against his release.
The one thing that strikes me about this though, is that he now donates half of his weekly wages to a children’s charity in Plymouth, which in my eyes is a fantastic and generous act. He also has shown remorse for what he has done, he has quite possibly learned from his mistakes. Once again, he doesn’t deserve people on his back for the rest of his life because of one foolish mistake.
Just think about what you say about footballers like these two before you say anything, think about whether they really deserve to be subject to criticism for the rest of their careers, think about whether they deserve to have people demand that they never play football again.
Thanks for reading.
Under The Floodlights 