Dover Athletic manager Chris Kinnear has been left stunned by the news that three of his former players are accused of spot fixing.

When the latest match fixing scandal hit the headlines last weekend, it was centred on Sam Sodje and his claims to a “Sun on Sunday” reporter that he could get players booked or sent off if the price is right, our national game drew a collective breath as if to say that it couldn’t happen.

In case you missed it, Sodje was sent off whilst playing in a game for Portsmouth at Oldham for hitting home player Jose Baxter – actions that the national press described as “crazy” at the time – crazy possibly but he was allegedly paid £70,000 or £35,000 a punch!

Sodje’s Football League career was duly listed to include Brentford, Notts County and Portsmouth, but how many remember that Sodje once called Kent home and Margate to be precise.

It was during the period that the Gate were ground sharing at Crabble and it was at Dover’s ground that Sodje scored on his debut. All through his two season stay, he came across as extremely popular with fans and team mates alike, which is just another reason why his involvement in these latest allegations is so mind blowing to those who knew him, especially to the man who signed him, the current Dover Athletic boss, Chris Kinnear.

Speaking after his sides 0-2 defeat against Bromley at Crabble on Tuesday night, Kinnear was clearly shaken when asked about Sodje’s involvement.

He told KSN of his total bewilderment with the news when he heard – a feeling that you sense still hasn’t quite registered now nearly a week after the story first appeared.

Kinnear told us, “I can’t really still understand it really. He was a great person really, just like his brothers really – him, Steve and Akpo – all three of them have played for me at some stage.”

“I know them very well – Sam has the same birth as my Chris and has phoned up on his birthday to with him Happy Birthday, but you never know. I would never have thought the three of them would be implicated, but there you go!”

With the “Sodje Shadow” now hanging over our national game, Kinnear denied that these illegal payments will put more pressure on Non League managers and hierarchy.

The Dover boss told KSN, “I would like to think that if any of my players did it, I would be able to pick it up and what they’re doing. But in the case it obviously wasn’t picked up.”

“I’m not any better than anyone else at picking up something like that, but let’s be honest, if someone wanted to be corrupt they will be. There’s corrupt people in every walk of life and that’s just the way it is -you can’t just blame footballers for it.”

“It’s shocking and terrible as I can’t understand how someone could even think about doing it or how for that matter they even go about it, but obviously something’s happening and it must be stopped straight away whilst we’ve still got a game to protect.”

And it is those sentiments that must at all times be remembered – we have still have a great game to protect, and must do everything in our collective power to do so.

But when your see top players earning over £100,000 a week, whilst totally inexcusable, you can see why players especially in the current economic climate, who play for a fraction of that (if they get paid at all) would be tempted for a one off payment for doing something (like Sodje’s sending off) that if you saw at the time would think a little odd!

Sodje and the other five who have been arrested and are being investigated have dragged the name of football through to the very limit of bringing the game into disrepute and the people who were involved have dragged the game through the mud and they must not be allowed to do it again!

But that then open’s the frightening questions that we don’t want to ask – are there other scams still going on? And is this just the tip of arguably the most dangerous iceberg that our sport has ever faced?