Everyone who reads this site knows I’ve got no issue with Kenny Miller; he’s one of those guys who gets on with the job and doesn’t involve himself in the kind of nonsense other players do. I don’t have to tell you who I mean there, right?
But today’s front page news about how he’s been charged with common assault is a strange one because it brings full circle a story I’ve been following for about a week, and what makes it interesting is that it’s ended up contradicting the so-called “official version”, which was being put about in the aftermath of the Celtic – Sevco match earlier this month.
In the “official version” Miller and his wife were victims, and although it was never stated that they had been targeted by Celtic fans that was very much the inference people were drawing from the incident. Much had been made of Miller’s wife losing a pair of earrings that were so expensive it kind of boggles the mind what people will do with an excess of money.
So what actually happened? I won’t speculate, because the case is going to go to court and there we’ll get the brass tacks of it. By then it won’t interest me one bit; what some over-paid footballer and his missus do isn’t the province of this site. No, I’m more interested in the process. How did a version of events make its way into the media where Miller was a victim and the perpetrators were hinted at being motivated by football rivalry?
This is important because, of course, we’re playing them again next month.
If you let the media away with this kind of thing you’re asking for trouble.
In the aftermath of any incident which involves a high profile person a number of things happens almost immediately. His or her lawyers get involved to smooth things over as best they can. Miller will have been told that same night that it was likely he’d face criminal charges over whatever went on. At that point, the focus is damage limitation.
So a PR firm would have been called in. Who represents Miller? Well, it wouldn’t make sense for him to pay for a public relations firm when his employer already does, and it wouldn’t be cool to have a story in the press about how he’d been arrested in a drunken brawl on the night his team had been turned over 5-1. That would look very bad, and very undisciplined.
Hold that thought, because I’ll come back to it in a minute.
Now, Sevco is represented by Level 5.
They have extensive media contacts. It seems, to me, that a decision was taken to completely change the narrative of this event. According to the initial reports, which appeared across the media, Miller and his wife were caught up in an incident of violence which was spun to be concerned with the match. There was no suggestions, at all, in the early reports that Miller himself was a suspect although you would presume the press had talked to people who were on the scene at the time.
I heard a story earlier in the week that Miller was going to be charged with something; I dismissed it as tittle-tattle, and in fact let it go right over my head. I didn’t even connect the incidents, which is a measure of how deftly handled this was. Besides, what do I care? As I said yesterday I’m not in the gossip business … but when the news broke today I wasn’t the only person who marvelled at how different to the “official version” this had actually played out.
I have no idea if Miller or someone else was cheesed off over the result and kicked off; it’s white noise. I care that the media insinuated that he’d been targeted because of the club he played for, with all the connotations of that. They didn’t lie; this was much more insidious than that. They simply twisted the facts to get the narrative they wanted.
And now that the truth is known, of course, it raises one other issue.
Miller is still in the Sevco squad.
He was an unused substitute the other night at the Queen of the South game.
He came on as a sub for the match against Ross County.
If you surmise that the club’s PR department is good at its job then you have to surmise they knew he’d done something wrong. Which means the club knew. Which kind of begs the question as to whether they’ve initiated an in-house disciplinary procedure against the player or not.
Because at the moment one of their other players is on a three week ban, and is the target of a co-ordinated and brutal campaign of negative press, the PR equivalent of a punishment beating. The machine has been used to demonise him – not that he needs it. Because he is a ned, and a thug.
But Miller isn’t being charged with driving under the influence here; this is an assault charge, the very same sort of charge for which their other player is being whipped without mercy. He deserves it, and courts have already found him guilty. But I already know that if Miller is convincted the club and the media will fight his corner because they are already. The same PR machine has been used to spin and twist his incident, to protect the player and the club from the inevitable hard questions … not that I have any faith they’ll be asked.
So which is worse, I ask you? Giving your manager a little back-chat, or getting into a neddish brawl on the very night your team has been pumped by the club they consider their biggest rivals? You tell me; what’s the greater indiscipline?
Sevco has a press conference today ahead of the Aberdeen game.
Let’s see if someone – anyone – has the guts to ask “Warbo” that one.