Goodwillie rape victim condemns football authorities for ‘silence’

It is “shameful” that David Goodwillie was allowed to continue playing football after being found by a court to have committed rape, the woman he assaulted said.

Denise Clair hit out at the footballing authorities, accusing them of being “complicit” with their “silence”.

At a civil case at the Court of Session in Edinburgh in 2017, Goodwillie and his former Dundee United team-mate, David Robertson, were judged to have raped Ms Clair and ordered to pay her damages of £100,000.

No criminal action has been brought against either man and Robertson has since retired from professional football.

Goodwillie had joined Championship team Raith Rovers from Scottish League One side Clyde FC, where he had been a player for five years.

Ms Clair, 30, spoke out for the first time since the signing sparked a furious backlash from fans and the 30-year-old criticised the footballing authorities over their stance, saying: “Their silence deafened me.”

She told the Sunday Post newspaper: “It’s shameful they have allowed Goodwillie to continue playing all these years without taking any action. They are just as complicit as him and Robertson with their silence and looking the other way.”

She insisted: “It is not enough for the footballing authorities, the league, the SFA (Scottish Football Association) to stay silent on this.

“They talk so much about equality and respect but when faced with actual reality instead of waffle, their silence deafened me.

“There needs to be officials who do nothing but ensure players and clubs are properly made aware of their responsibilities.

“They should be developing educational programmes about sexual violence. Practical measures, not warm words about nothing, could promote real change.”

Author and club sponsor Val McDermid and former prime minister Gordon Brown amongst those criticising the club.

The signing also saw the ladies’ team break their ties with the club, with their team – now known as the McDermid Ladies – playing their first match on Sunday backed by the best-selling crime writer.

Raith Rovers eventually backed down and announced on Thursday that Goodwillie will not play for them after all, with chairman John Sim conceding they “got it wrong” when they signed the 32-year-old.

The SFA have been contacted for comment.