Ivan Toney deserves to be punished for the 232 breaches of the FA’s betting rules that he has admitted to. He can hardly claim it was an isolated case.
He has been foolish. And if fans start to doubt the integrity of a sport, either because of gambling or the use of performance-enhancing drugs, that sport dies. Look at athletics.
But the length of the ban handed down to the Brentford and England striker by the independent regulatory commission is out of all proportion to the offences. It is not just harsh. It is ridiculously harsh.