DAVID O’LEARY once defended Lee Bowyer during his tumultuous time at Leeds United by saying that the tea ladies loved him. Away from his caffeine-addled backers, however, people from various walks of life were quick to admonish the errant midfield player and conclude that not everything in black and white makes sense.

Union chiefs, football fans and psychologists joined forces to condemn Bowyer and Kieron Dyer and agree that football is not worth beating yourself up about. Malcolm Clarke, the chairman of the Football Supporters’ Federation, labelled the fisticuffs “ridiculous” and criticised Graeme Souness, the Newcastle United manager, for saying that the players had enjoyed a laugh about it.

“I would be very surprised if the Newcastle fans would be laughing off the fact that one or two of their best players would be missing the FA Cup semifinal,” Clarke said. “It is not a laughing matter and it was an insensitive comment in the circumstances. Anybody else fighting a workmate in a place of work would be guilty of misconduct and most probably be dismissed, but footballers seem to operate in another world.”

Chris Keates, general secretary of the National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Women Teachers, said that footballers had a responsibility to their young fans to control their tempers. “For some keen football fans it sets a completely bad example,” she said. “It undermines the whole issue of sportsmanship and fair play. How much impact it has on school pupils is difficult to judge, but it’s certainly not desirable and is certain to influence some.”

She said that teachers seen brawling in public might be barred from the profession. “It would be very serious and initially they would probably both be suspended, pending an investigation. We would have to look at the impression it gave to the children.”

Being under the influence of Bowyer is an alarming prospect for the nation’s parents, but Andy Barton, a sports psychologist, believes that the Newcastle man may have been pushed over the edge by a deep sense of helplessness.

“There are certain triggers that people have and, from what I can see, Bowyer’s was Dyer not passing to him,” he said. “He wanted to have an impact and was not able to. We saw the anger inside him because he was not able to have control and that was the trigger.”

Barton said that the spat could have a debilitating effect on Newcastle’s future. “The main impact would be on how they are perceived by future opponents, because if people see discord in the team it can have quite a big effect,” he said. “It can build up other teams.

“But it would be unfair to say that this is a team in disarray. It could just have been an individual reaction to something. Bowyer is a very passionate individual and being thrashed 3-0 at home by Aston Villa will have had a profound effect on him.”

Although he must come to terms with being docked six weeks’ wages, Bowyer has reason to be thankful that he is not a member of the TUC. “Good practice for something like this would be a disciplinary hearing,” a spokesman said. “They would be hauled up before a senior team, if it was thought they had brought the organisation into disrepute, and the team would look at factors like their disciplinary records.

“It’s very important that staff are treated consistently, but one thing they would look at would be how these type of decisions had been reached in the past.”

The charladies back at Elland Road may feel this is a storm in a teacup and will be glad that Bowyer is punching his weight again, but a heavily tarnished reputation means that he can expect little sympathy from everyone else.

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