OPINION
There has to be uproar among West Ham fans after it was reported how poorly James Collins’ exit from the club has been handled.
The 34-year-old enforcer was looking likely to leave the club in recent months as his contract was set to expire in June, and there was no official word on a new contract being tabled.
However any decision to let Collins go, after his loyal service to the club, wouldn’t have been an issue if handled with proper respect and care.
Yet according to ExWHUemployee, who is a reliable source for reliable and exclusive West Ham insider information, confirmed that rumours about the enforcer being let go via email were true.
The rumours about James Collins are true. He received an email on Tuesday via Andrew Pincher with an attached letter confirming that he was to be released on a free. There was no mention of a testimonial either. Ginge is understandably gutted at the treatment.
— ExWHUEmployee (@ExWHUEmployee) May 19, 2018
They must have known before the Everton game they were going to do this. So why not make that his send off game officially!?! https://t.co/iBRYFoKDYv
— ExWHUEmployee (@ExWHUEmployee) May 19, 2018
News of Collins’ inexcusable treatment first surfaced on Saturday morning when talkSPORT’s Georgie Bingham, via her personal Twitter account, stated that her co-host Tony Cascarino had it on good authority that the Hammers mainstay had been released by the club.
Cas has it on good authority that not only has James Collins been released by West Ham after 11 years without ceremony or tribute but it's been done by email. Yuck. #WHUFC
— Georgie Bingham (@georgiebingham) May 19, 2018
The radio personality’s tweet revealed that Collins was even set to depart without ceremony or tribute, despite spending a lengthy amount time at the club between two different spells.
Collins may not have done enough to warrant a new deal at the club in the 16 appearances he made, when you consider his injury problems and age, in the recently concluded campaign, but he didn’t deserve such poor treatment.
The 34-year-old should have been given a glorious sendoff into the sunset and the way his exit has reportedly been handled, just rightly covers the Hammers in shame.
There are few reasons for fans to vocally voice their uproar but unacceptable treatment of a loyal player like Collins, calls for it.
This decision has undone all the work the board have attempted to do to calm supporters after they angrily protested the direction of the club in November over failed promises, as reported by the iNews, and it seems the club are now once again back at square one.
Therefore Hammers supporters have once again rightly found themselves up in arms over the club’s decision to handle Collins’ exit in such an inexcusable way.
