Parkinson urges football to move on after Southampton Spygate ruling

WHAT HAPPENED
Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson has called on the game to "move on" after the Football Association issued sanctions over Southampton's spying incident. The FA handed Saints head coach Tonda Eckert a six-week suspended ban and a £28,000 fine. Southampton were previously kicked out of the play-off final for spying on three Championship opponents and given a four-point deduction this season.

PARKINSON'S REACTION
Parkinson said he could not "quite fathom" why the investigation took so long but argued the club and wider game now need to respect the decisions of the English Football League and the FA. He referenced comments from Southampton chairman Dragan Solak that the club had "suffered enough" and added: "They are going to move on, and everybody else has to move on." Parkinson said Eckert, whom he described as a young manager, will have "accepted responsibility" and that people should "draw a line through it and move on."

WREXHAM CONTEXT
Parkinson's side had narrowly missed out on the play-offs last season before Southampton were removed from the final. Wrexham’s owners, Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac, released a promotional video ahead of the clubs' recent meeting; Wrexham won that match 2-1 at the Racecourse, the decisive goal coming from Keven Schlotterbeck's own goal at the death. That result sent Wrexham into the extended international break on a high and eased pressure after a 6-0 defeat at West Ham.

PRACTICAL CHALLENGES
Parkinson said the three-week gap without a Championship fixture posed challenges. He described the friendly against Wigan as "really important" and said the squad had found a "decent balance of rest, fitness work and 11 vs 11 practice" during the break.