Southampton FC employee 'who abused young boys' still working in football

Players made to line up naked in a changing room to be inspected, says alleged victim

Southampton have become the latest club to be embroiled in the child sexual abuse scandal in football (Getty)

A former employee of Southampton FC accused of abusing young players at the club in the 1980s is still working in football, according to reports.

The staff member is understood to have left Southampton after concerns were raised about his behaviour towards young boys, yet he is thought to still be working in the game.

Young boys were made to line up naked in a changing room to be inspected, a former player – now in his 40s – told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

He criticised both the police and the football club for not investigating properly, saying: “I'm angry it's happening now and wasn't sorted out years ago.

“There's lots of failures in the system and he needs to be held accountable.”

According to the broadcaster, the man in his 40s is the fourth former player at the club to make allegations of abuse against the man, who went on to work for other clubs and still has a job in the sport.

Southampton had previously said it would work with Hampshire police during as part of a large scale probe into youth football across the country.

At least 18 forces are involved in the investigation, as a storm of as many as 350 allegations shakes the sport.

So far 10 suspects have been identified and Greater Manchester Police said it was investigating reports from 35 people, with its inquiry growing on a “daily basis”.

On Thursday the NSPCC reported that it received 860 calls to its dedicated football helpline within the first week of its opening.

It comes as former Southampton player and England captain, Alan Shearer, urged footballers to come forward with allegations of sexual abuse.

Mr Shearer said he was “shocked and deeply saddened” by the recent revelations.

The former striker, who played for Newcastle United – another of the clubs under investigation – said anyone who has suffered abuse in the sport, or is still suffering, should come forward.

“Every club – from the grassroots up – must continue to look at what they're doing to prevent abuse happening to any kids today and in the future,” he said.

Current captain Wayne Rooney has also appeared in a video on “safeguarding” published for the FA and NSPCC.

In the clip, which has been published on the FA official Twitter account, Mr Rooney said: “”If you're a young boy or girl and you're upset, hurt or scared with the way someone behaves with you, please let someone you trust know now.“

Mr Rooney had previously said no-one should “suffer in silence” and praised Andy Woodward, who first came forward to say he was abused as a young player.

West Midlands Police also said it was “investigating four historical allegations of child sexual abuse in football” and Kent Police said it had received reports of abuse within the county's football community.

Former Chelsea star Alan Hudson, said it was “common knowledge” that ex-coach Eddie Heath “was a danger to us youngsters”.

Mr Hudson, a midfielder for the club between 1968 and 1974, spoke out on Facebook after it was claimed Chelsea paid off former striker Gary Johnson who alleged he was abused by Mr Heath.

Mr Johnson said he was paid £50,000 not to go public with allegations that he was sexually abused by its former chief scout.

Chelsea said on Tuesday that it had appointed an external law firm to carry out a formal investigation into a former employee, with the club refusing to comment on any of the details.

Mr Heath, who was the club's chief scout from 1968 to 1979, died before the allegations were made.

The National Association for People Abused in Childhood said it had seen a ten-fold increase in the number of adult survivors of child abuse registering for their support groups — from 10 registrations a week to 100 in the past three weeks.

The NPCCs new hotline is available 24 hours a day on 0800 023 2642.

Additional reporting by Press Association