A footballer who doesn’t spit is about as common as an England penalty shoot-out success.
But one town hall is doing its bit to stamp out the practice by warning local players they could face prosecution for spitting on the pitch.
The amateur players at Winchmore Hill FC received a letter from Enfield council reminding them of a by-law banning spitting in public places.
Enfield was one of the first local authorities to introduce legislation banning spitting, punishable by a £500 fine.
The letter from a council officer states “we would like to remind you that the by-law does provide authorised officers with the powers to prosecute those witnessed spitting. Please cascade this information to your players and those of the opposition team to avoid the risk of prosecution.”
But players derided the warning. Peter Collop, captain of Latymer Old Boys first XI, which plays in Enfield, said: “This is completely unenforceable on a football pitch and quite frankly laughable.
“It is something almost every player does — it all gets washed away by the end of the game. There is no way anybody will stop doing this.” Chris Bond, Enfield’s cabinet member for environment, admitted the letter was “overzealous”.
He said : “We’ll be clarifying our position with the clubs but there is no intention to prosecute anyone playing football.
“The original letter was intended to be a polite request asking footballers not to spit because it’s a revolting habit, but was overzealous in tone and did not reflect the spirit of the by-law.”
