Leeds Letter May Incur Judge's Reprisal

Leeds United's chief executive, Shaun Harvey, sent a letter to Football League clubs last month setting out the grounds for the club's challenge to the 15-point penalty imposed, in apparent breach of rules governing football arbitrations.

The club and the League undertook to adhere to the Football Association's regulations in the arbitration that concluded on Monday, meaning they were bound by the confidentiality clauses underlined under FA rule K6: "The parties shall preserve and respect the confidentiality of the arbitration proceedings, including the issues in the dispute and the evidence and arguments presented by the parties."

Yet by the end of Harvey's five-page letter, sent out on March 20, Leeds had put everybody on notice about the eight points they would argue. He asserted a belief the club would prove a lack of independence in the League's attempts to legitimize its 15-point penalty through a club vote, adding that in voting on the issue all of Leeds's League One competitors would have "a vested interest". Sir Philip Otton, who chaired the FA's independent arbitration panel, is believed to be considering the letter's implications. He is known to hold the confidentiality of his proceedings paramount, giving all parties what one source referred to as "a big talking to" and threatening reprisals for breaches.

The League took this so seriously that they were even refusing to confirm the existence of the arbitration the night before it began.

And Healy must score

David Healy's lack of goals, which has contributed to Fulham's slump and left them facing relegation which could result in a £25m loss of income, may prove costly for Leeds too. The League One club stand to receive a performance-related sum from Fulham for the £1.5m striker if he scores five goals this season. With only three games in which to retrieve their five-point deficit from safety, Healy has four goals to his name.

Coca-Cola could get burnt

Coca-Cola was last night accused of "complicity" in an impending humanitarian disaster in Tibet if the torch relay it sponsors passes through the region. The governor of the Tibetan Autonomous Region, Qiangba Puncog, has warned that Chinese authorities "will not be merciful" if there are uprisings there. These fears prompted more than 150 organizations to act as co-signatories to a letter yesterday putting pressure on Coca-Cola to demand that the International Olympic Committee abandons plans to carry the torch on Tibetan soil.

Lowe faces tough task

Rupert Lowe's return to take over at Southampton is set for May 16. Lowe and his partner, Michael Wilde, command 46% of the shares, which makes their attempts to oust the directors Leon Crouch, Lee Hoos, Patrick Trant and Keith Wiseman almost sure to succeed. Wilde intends to take over as chairman, with Lowe taking the position of executive chairman of the holding company. The first priority will be to stabilize a club whose business plan requires the "sale of various assets". Its accounts admit it is close to bankrupt, saying that whether it can remain a going concern is "uncertain". It is hardly surprising that Lowe and Wilde will resist demands for severance money to the departed when, although the 11-man boardroom shrank to nine over a period in which annual turnover fell £2.5m, directors' pay somehow rose by 22%. Remarkably the highest-paid director earned £226,000 in the 12 months to June 30 last year.

Arsenal fans miss out

Over 98% of voting members of the Arsenal Supporters' Trust - speaking for more than 3% of the club's shareholders - backed the directors' lockdown agreement in a recent ballot. The club intended to reciprocate the support yesterday by launching a portal on its website offering a variety of benefits. Fan-shareholders were excited at the opportunity to meet the manager, Arsène Wenger, but Arsenal clearly did not prepare well. Although there are little more than 1,500 shareholders in the club, attempts to access the micro-site yesterday sent it into a meltdown.

matt.scott@guardian.co.uk