A non-league footballer with Hitchin Town, named Alfie Barker, has apologised for sending an utterly vile tweet to Irish midfielder Harry Arter following Bournemouth's 3-3 draw with Arsenal last night.
Bournemouth led the game 3-0, before succumbing to an Arsenal comeback. Barker sent the following disgusting tweet to Arter, mocking the death of his daughter.
Big hype just for a disappointment like the nine months leading up to your child's birth.
Barker claimed his account was hacked, but subsequently issued an apology.
He is currently on loan at Codicote FC, who said they will investigate the issue with the FA:
We are disgusted and appalled at comments made by our loan player. We will work with the FA and other authorities on an appropriate solution.
His manager Mark Burke had this to say:
We just want to make sure his account hasn't been hacked.
It doesn't look good for him at the moment. It does appear he's made these comments and if that is the case we will be terminating his registration with us.
I've seen the tweets and I'm disgusted with them. They're vile and I can't condone them in any way.
Arter has a tattoo on his arm in memory of his stillborn daughter, who died in December 2015. A year after her death, Arter gave an interview to the Guardian, in which he said that he remembers her every day:
Every day I think of her. And it’s strange because there are days when I feel like a normal person, or how someone who hasn’t lost a baby would feel. But then it will just hit you, driving along and suddenly you see something that triggers your mind.
UPDATE: In the last few moment, Barker has been sacked by his parent club. they released this statement, via Press Association:
Hitchin Town have sacked Alfie Barker following tweets sent to Harry Arter pic.twitter.com/QcAZrICM6Z
— PA Dugout (@PAdugout) January 4, 2017
[BBC]
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