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Bluebirds boss rapped over coach travel
Exclusive By Nick Mashiter
Adie Mings
Adie Mings

Chippenham Town boss Adie Mings has been rapped the club's board on the eve of the Bluebirds' biggest game of the season after a row over coach travel.

Mings booked the Swindon Town players' coach for his side to travel to their Southern League Premier Division Play-Off semi-final at Halesowen tonight but the board say he did it without consulting them.

Now some board members are refusing to travel on the coach and will go independently.

The problems arose when Mings told the board of the booking yesterday but they had already arranged travel through Coachstyle.

"Protocol was not followed,'' said secretary Chris Blake. "We had an agreement with a local coach company and we have not come out of it looking good.

"He went and booked it and once the players knew, we were not going to say sorry they couldn't have it.

"We are travelling up on our own. That is the way it is."

Blake is adamant the board will not back down, despite the £450 cost of the coach being only £75 more than their normal travel.

"Money is not the point, it is the principal of how it was done,'' he said.

"As general manager and secretary I set up the agreement with the coach company and I should have been consulted.

"By the time we knew about it I had already ordered a coach and I had to crawl back to them."

Blake confirmed Mings has been taken to task over the booking but said they didn't want the issue to interfere with tonight's crunch game at The Grove.

"We talked about it and closed the book,'' he said.

"We have done our bit. I could have been well within my rights to call Swindon and cancel it.

"It is not something we want to get in the way of tonight but it is something which didn't need to happen."

Mings was unavailable for comment and Bluebirds assistant manager Tommy Callinan was quick to play down the row. He said: "I don't get involved with politics.

"Tonight should be a game everyone is looking forward to, never mind the issue with the coaches. It is a big game and people are worried about the coaches.''

11:43am Tuesday 29th April 2008

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