For a brief while, in the early 2010s, supporters of Middlesbrough FC borrowed from the Proclaimers to create a terrace song boasting that they would walk 500 miles (and 500 more) ‘just to see the mighty Middlesbrough’. It is presumed that young William Salt did not undertake his journey on foot, but a couple of weeks ago the Southampton intern went to almost as great lengths to watch the Teesside club in action.

Call me old-fashioned, but I would like to see my team get promoted on merit, by scoring goals, not petty points in some windowless hearing room

Call me old-fashioned, but I would like to see my team get promoted on merit, by scoring goals, not petty points in some windowless hearing room

But Master Salt did not venture on his 580-mile round trip for a match. Rather he went to Middlesbrough’s training ground, whereupon, and one presumes not for posterity, he is accused of surreptitiously recording Kim Hellberg’s side preparing for the Championship play-off semi-final first leg.

The issue for Middlesbrough is that their opponents were to be Salt’s employers, and thus he broke a rule that forbids any such surveillance in the 72 hours before a game. They made their grievances known........

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