Parkinson urges football to 'move on' after FA verdict in Spygate case

Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson said it was time to draw a line under the Spygate scandal and urged the football community to "move on" following the Football Association's verdict, comments published on 8 October 2026. His remarks came after Southampton head coach Tonda Eckert was handed a six-week suspended ban and a £28,000 fine by the FA for his role.

Wrexham had narrowly missed out on the play-offs last season before Southampton were kicked out of the final for spying on three Championship opponents, and Saints were also given a four-point deduction for this season. Parkinson said he did not understand why the investigation had taken so long, adding: "Everybody outside of Southampton [and probably those inside the club] has been concerned about why it has taken so long to get to this point," said Parkinson. "I can't quite fathom it. Everybody has now got to respect the decision, firstly from the English Football League and secondly from the FA."

Parkinson cited comments from Southampton chairman Dragan Solak that the club had "suffered enough" and said Saints had been punished severely. "They are going to move on, and everybody else has to move on. I was reading the chairman quotes. They have been punished severely," Parkinson said. "They lost the chance to get into the Premier League. That is punishment enough. Tonda is a young manager, and I'm sure he has accepted responsibility."

Wrexham's owners, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, released a promotional video that took a dig at Southampton before the clubs met in the league last month. Wrexham won that match 2-1 at the Racecourse, the decisive moment coming from Keven Schlotterbeck's own goal at the death. That win sent Wrexham into the extended international break in positive fashion and eased some pressure on Parkinson after a 6-0 defeat at West Ham.

Parkinson said the three-week absence of Championship fixtures created challenges for his squad and praised the preparations during the break. "It has been a long three weeks. The three weeks have been decent. The friendly against Wigan was really important," Parkinson said. "Three weeks is too long for the lads to go without a competitive game. All we could do is plan out the three weeks, which we did."

He also reflected on training and small setbacks during the break, stressing the work done by his players. He added: "There have been a few things that did not go our way, but everybody is going to get that across a three-week period. "In general, I feel the lads have trained well. They've had a decent balance of rest, fitness work and 11 vs 11 practice."

Parkinson concluded by urging acceptance of the rulings and a return to normal business, saying: "He will learn from that, but now everybody has to draw a line through it and move on."