Football club claim they were ‘unaware’ of star midfielder’s conviction for dealing cocaine until 30 minutes AFTER his sentencing

Welsh top-flight outfit Barry Town has claimed they were unaware of midfielder Evan Press’ conviction for dealing cocaine until 30 minutes after his sentencing. 

The midfielder was jailed for two years and six months at Newport Crown Court after pleading guilty to being concerned in the supply of Class A drug cocaine.

Press has played every game this season for the semi-professional side Barry and has worn the captain’s armband on 19 occasions. The 24-year-old has been a key player for the outfit, having scored 11 goals in 187 appearances since his arrival in 2018. 

Barry Town will now be without Press for an extended period after he admitted to dealing cocaine in Cardiff between February 2021 and November 2023. The club has insisted that they had no idea of the midfielder’s legal troubles, leading to Press appearing in three matches for the side after pleading guilty on February 11. 

‘Being brutally honest we only heard about this on the day he was sentenced. He had never told us,’ a club spokesperson told WalesOnline. ‘We were unaware until half an hour after the sentencing on March 19 when we were contacted by a family member.

‘Since the sentencing we’ve heard bits about the case but we don’t have all the information. We have been processing the news. It is a real shock. 

Barry Town has insisted that they were unaware of the midfielder’s legal troubles, having fielded the 24-year-old three times since his guilty plea

‘Evan is a wonderful young man. He’s been part of our club for seven years. He has made a mistake and my understanding is it happened some time ago. We are a family club who want our players to be role models. This was news to us.’

In addition to his custodial term, Press was ordered to pay a £190 victim services surcharge. 

He began his career in the Newport County academy, but has been a mainstay for Barry for the last seven years. 

The spokesman added: ‘The boys are playing [on Saturday] and they’ll carry on as normal. It is what it is. The reality is when a player leaves our care we can’t control what they do outside of football.

‘We’re just coming close to European play-offs but in reality the timing of the season is irrelevant. We didn’t want this and we can’t control it sadly.’