English Premiership
Terry insists he's not a racist
2012-07-10 13:17
London - Former England football captain John
Terry said he suffered continual abuse during football matches but was
not prepared to put up with being branded a racist, his trial heard
on Tuesday.
Westminster Magistrates Court in London was played a
recording of an interview between Chelsea skipper Terry and an
investigator from the Football Association (FA), the sport's governing
body in England.
The central defender is accused of calling Queens
Park Rangers player Anton Ferdinand a "fucking black cunt" during a
match between Chelsea and QPR on October 23 last year.
The 31-year-old denies committing a racially aggravated public order offence.
A week after the incident, Terry was called in for an interview with FA investigator Jennifer Kennedy.
"I
have been called a lot of things in my football career and off the
pitch, but being called a racist I am not prepared to take," the court
heard Terry saying on the tape.
"That's why I came out and made my statement immediately.
"I am not having Anton thinking that about me or anyone else.
He told the investigator he was repeating back to Ferdinand what he believed the QPR defender he had said to him.
He said he thought Ferdinand was accusing him of calling him those words.
"I was taken aback by that. I have never been accused of that," he said.
Tuesday is the second day of Terry's trial, which is expected to last five days.