New John Higgins development

The John Higgins case has taken a dramatic new twist.

The Sporting Intelligence website has reported that the News of the World, which ran edited footage on its website in May purporting to show Higgins agreeing to lose frames for money, will not hand over the full unedited tapes unless the three times world champion agrees not to sue them at any point in the future.

Higgins, who remains suspended from all tournaments, is likely to hear his fate at a tribunal in early September.

Source - snookerscene.blogspot.com/

strange stuff

Let me be the first to say – why would the NOTW fear being sued when the full unedited video is realised?

This further supports the sporting intelligences findings where by the video was heavily edited. Edited to the point where Higgins was shown answering questions out of ‘real time’, in fact what he was answering was not what was being put to him by the journalist.

case_master wrote:Let me be the first to say – why would the NOTW fear being sued when the full unedited video is realised?

This further supports the sporting intelligences findings where by the video was heavily edited. Edited to the point where Higgins was shown answering questions out of ‘real time’, in fact what he was answering was not what was being put to him by the journalist.

poor higgins he name has been unfairly blacken, not to mention loss of earnings

i think its obvious higgins is inoccent, also prehaps he didn't report the approch when got back to uk because there was nothing to report, prehaps the video has been so badly "twisted" and "edited" that the origional convo they had in kiev was general chit chat

thats why that tape is so vital and thats why the NOTW are recycling bricks over it.

its clear cut to me open and shut nothing to answer for.

I added the word John to the topic title just in case anyone got their hopes up of a miraculous resurrection.


Interesting development indeed. Come on John!

This says it all for me, John has lost ranking points, earnings and his name has been dragged through the mud and will continue to for many years from non-snooker fans who don’t know the full story and from cretins on 606. A man who has been a great ambassador for the game and now it looks like either way he won’t be able to rightfully sue the scum tabloid. But surly now this will bring an end to this nightmare the scum tabloids story has now got no substance so hopefully come mid September Higgins can get on with his life and career. I just pray this doesn’t effect his game and he can find the magnificent form he’s showed throughout his career.

Sonny wrote:I added the word John to the topic title just in case anyone got their hopes up of a miraculous resurrection.

wildJONESEYE wrote:thats why that tape is so vital and thats why the NOTW are recycling bricks over it.

its clear cut to me open and shut nothing to answer for.

You've changed your tune pretty sharpish!

JohnFromLondonTown wrote:

wildJONESEYE wrote:thats why that tape is so vital and thats why the NOTW are recycling bricks over it.

its clear cut to me open and shut nothing to answer for.

You've changed your tune pretty sharpish!

no i go with evidence of whats in front of us and not sentiment of wanting someone cleared because they was John Higgins.

if hes guilty hang the runt however on this piece of information the NOTW hasn't got a leg to stand on.

JohnFromLondonTown wrote:

wildJONESEYE wrote:thats why that tape is so vital and thats why the NOTW are recycling bricks over it.

its clear cut to me open and shut nothing to answer for.

You've changed your tune pretty sharpish!

with NOTW wanting John Higgins to promise not to sue is them basically signing their own confession.

Higgins is INOCCENT

To say that this sounds bad for the News of The World is a massive understatement. If the video tape proved that Higgins did it conclusively, they'd have handed it over. And asking not to be sued is the same as admitting they have something to be sued about. I don't see how the NOTW can get around this. They've made themselves look like a bunch of plebs. NOTW = This can only be good news for snooker, for John, and for the fans.

But one question remains, for me. Much though I am happy to say it looks like Higgins will be cleared, why the hell did John Higgins start whittering on the mafia for? By the sound of it, he didn't agree to max fixing, so why provide an explanation to say why he did do it? That's just crazy. If he gets proven innocent, why is he making excuses for why he did it? Any lawyer defending NOTW would be all over Higgins asking him that. Is there still more twists in the tail, because I can't for a reason understand why he'd make up something like that, if it was just the video that had been editted.

case_master wrote:Let me be the first to say – why would the NOTW fear being sued when the full unedited video is realised?

This further supports the sporting intelligences findings where by the video was heavily edited. Edited to the point where Higgins was shown answering questions out of ‘real time’, in fact what he was answering was not what was being put to him by the journalist.

Am I the only one who thinks there is a hell of a lot of stuff we are not being told here? The News Of The World are almost completely without morals at times, but they aren't complete idiots, surely. Would they really create this footage, knowing that on uneditted viewing it would prove their guilt? It seems beyond stupid. And there is a big difference between immoral and stupid, never underestimate your enemy. This along with Higgins almost admission of his own guilt, when he can now proove he wasn't guilty at all, at least from a court of law perspective, makes all this still sound like there are questions that need to be answered.

Mate the fact they refuse to hand over the tapes shows that higgins whittering on about maffia is getting even more plausable.

he said it was a intimidating environmental that tape might prove that conclusively

wildJONESEYE wrote:Mate the fact they refuse to hand over the tapes shows that higgins whittering on about maffia is getting even more plausable.

he said it was a intimidating environmental that tape might prove that conclusively

wildJONESEYE wrote:Mate the fact they refuse to hand over the tapes shows that higgins whittering on about maffia is getting even more plausable.

he said it was a intimidating environmental that tape might prove that conclusively

Yeah, I didn't look at it like that. I guess, I just assumed that the News Of The World people had talked to him under some guise and say asked him what his favourite breakfast cereal was, and ended up editting it so it looked like he was saying; "Yeah, I'd love to fix matches." I guess the ruse would be slightly more subtle then that. And even if the mafia story may seem like Higgins oversold the danger somewhat, he still could've felt pressured into saying certain things as he didn't know quite who he was dealing with.

It was just speculation on my part, and lets hope we can get this nonsense behind us, Higgins can continue to play and we can all give a big to the News Of The World. It's not looking good for them, is it?

As much as we all hope the allegations against John are untrue, he is in well and truly in it.
NOTW is the largest selling toiletpaper in the world.
It's a tried and true formula and it's their game. Cook, devour then excrete their victims = rubbish into gold.
Of course they're not going to give up the ace up their sleeve. That tape is a bargaining tool... their insurance policy against financial loss via court judgements.
Whether Higgins is guilty or not, NOTW can be sued for any number of crimes not just "libel".
One of their reporters did 4 months in jail for illegal phone tapping.
Who knows whether or not Sarah Ferguson can make any money (which she needs) from the NOTW sting in May.
In June 2006, NOTW paid Ashley Cole £100,000 to settle a case over articles correctly alleging the footballer had used a mobile phone as a gay sex toy.

This tape is not just about Higgins' guilt or innocence, it's about, who knew, "the root of all evil".


=o(

Noel