It was, said the judge, 'very clear from all of this that there has been a very inconsistent approach and inconsistent standards being applied'.

Such an inconsistent approach hardly inspires confidence in its credibility.

Some players felt that his famed man-management skills, so evident during last season's title triumph, had given way to an erratic, inconsistent approach in his third season at the club.

The report condemned the inconsistent approach of different authorities in applying eligibility criteria, meaning that people in some areas were much more likely to get blue badges than in others.

They are designed to end the inconsistent approach which can see offenders in one area escaping with a caution while elsewhere they would be prosecuted for the same offence.