Times Sport editor John Hutchins offers his personal opinion on the events, topics and personalities in the world of sport.

AFTER being asked to write a sports’ column to fill the huge gap left by Heather Fell’s excellent weekly contributions to these pages for the past six years, I knew it would be a hard job to follow.

To tell the truth if it came to following Heather in anything sporting I would be trailing by a considerable distance. Somehow I don’t think a few appearances in the Devon and Junior Minor U16s football league or joint third in the Devon U11s chess championships (is that a sport?) compares with representing Great Britain at the modern pentathlon and an Olympic silver medal. However, as a mere sports fan I shall do my best.

What caught my eye this week was the edict by the football ruling body FIFA banning England and Scotland players wearing a poppy on Armistice Day (tomorrow) during their World Cup match. I’m glad that both the English and Scottish FA had the backbone to ignore their lofty and insensitive ruling. Quite right too.

The poppy is a symbol of remembrance of those people who lost their lives defending these islands and the rest of the world from tyranny. You would think FIFA, an organisation that is currently awash with allegations of bribery and corruption, would have better things to do.

Which brings me to Ian Holloway, the former manager of my beloved Plymouth Argyle (then under his leadership in the Championship). He was asked by a reporter — ‘Is the rumour true Mr Holloway that you are to leave Argyle and become the manager of Leicester City? To which Mr Holloway replied emphatically ‘Poppycock!’

Needless to say, Mr Holloway was installed as the Leicester City three days later. To Mr Holloway and FIFA — ‘Poppycock’ indeed!