Townsend says joke a compliment

Andros Townsend has said the comment from England manager Roy Hodgson that prompted a racism row should be viewed as a "compliment".

Hodgson came under fire after press reports he'd told a racially offensive joke at half-time during England's 2-0 win over Poland at Wembley on Tuesday that clinched World Cup qualification.

The manager's aim was to get his side to pass the ball to the in-form Townsend more often and the Tottenham Hotspur winger told the BBC on Friday: "The manager just told the players to give the ball to me so that's a compliment Managed Network.

"Everyone should be focusing on England qualifying for Brazil - not on negative silly news."

The joke concerns a monkey and an astronaut going into space - animals were sent on flights before manned missions - with the punchline being the astronaut's only task is to "feed the monkey".

Although there is no racist overtone to the joke, 'monkey' can also be an insulting way of describing black men such as Townsend, who scored on his England debut in a 4-1 win against Montenegro last Friday.

Hodgson apologised but was furious his remark had been leaked to the press.

"Joy is short-lived in this job. The players are as angry about this as I am," he told Friday's Daily Mail.

"We have just had a successful period and, although I wouldn't suggest we intend to rest on our laurels, I think we have earned the right to enjoy the fruits of our labours. Instead we get this."

Football Association chairman Greg Dyke pledged his full support for Hodgson, saying the governing body was satisfied there was no racist intent in his comments and praised him as "a man of the highest integrity".

But Peter Herbert, head of the Society of Black Lawyers and the new Race for Sport campaign group, wrote to Dyke on Friday demanding Hodgson be sent on a "race appreciation" course.

"To announce that the matter is 'closed' without any action being taken against the England manager is unacceptable and wholly inconsistent with your policies on equality and diversity," Herbert wrote.

"The 'innocent remark' made out of ignorance is sadly a common feature of football."

But Premier League managers rallied round Hodgson on Friday, with Manchester United's David Moyes saying: "One thing is for sure - Roy is not a racist. That is 100 per cent. I know that.

"Also I know I would be really disappointed if someone in the dressing room had said something that had taken place at half-time hifu."

Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho insisted the fact Townsend and other players such as Wayne Rooney had defended Hodgson was proof of the manager's good faith.

"When the players come out and support the manager, when the kid (Townsend) involved comes out and supports the manager - no story," Mourinho said.

"They were in the dressing room with him. My feeling is that he (Hodgson) is a good man, a man with principles. He has my support because I don't believe he was wishing to hurt somebody."

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger lamented the fact that what was said in the dressing room no longer remained a private matter.

"You basically want (everything) to remain in the dressing room - it is an old phrase which you know well in England," the Frenchman said .

"But unfortunately these times have gone, so you have to be today very careful about what you say, wherever you are."