It was only last month that their former owner Mazar Majheed was jailed for his part in the cricket spot-fixing case. Within days, the FA had hit Croydon Athletic with 24 disciplinary charges, causing many - including me - to conclude that they were in trouble for money-laundering: the charges were brought under a catch-all clause in the FA's regulations. It emerged, though, that the charges were conected with alleged irregular payments to players.
Today, The Rams were fined £7500 and had ten points deducted.
It's pretty much a disaster for them - after the deduction they will have only two points left, and they will be eleven points from safety in the Isthmian League, Division One South.
The charges, incidentally, date back to the 2009-10 season, when Athletic won this division - but only because of a ten-point deduction handed out to Folkestone Invicta for going into administration. Both teams were promoted that season; both were relegated in 2010-11, though Folkestone have handled their relegation much better.
Croydon Athletic's problems, though, go much deeper than an almost-certain relegation. The current club owner, who is the sister-in-law of Mazar Majheed, wants nothing to do with the club, and there must be some doubt as to whether she will pay the fine. Failure to pay it would almost certainly result in the club's expulsion from the FA.
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