I didn’t want to write about this again so soon. I had hoped to write about Fifa and their corruption or follow on from Andrew Muirhead’s article on Scotland and the selection policy in international teams.

But due to the reaction and comments I have received I feel I have to once again address this issue.

Let’s look at the facts.

Ched Evans, a convicted rapist who has had an appeal turned down, is out of jail after serving half of a five-year sentence.

His former club, Sheffield United, have allowed him to train with the club but have said they are not close to making a decision on whether or not to re-sign him as a player.

Since it was announced that he would train with the club, Charlie Webster, Lindsay Graham, Dave Berry and most recently Paul Heaton have resigned from their positions as patrons of the club.

Shirt sponsors John Holland car sales and DBL logistics have threatened to pull their sponsorship if Evans pulls on a shirt for the club.

Athlete Jessica Ennis-Hill has also warned the club that she will ask to have her name removed if the striker signs a contract for the team as it will contradict her beliefs.

Throughout this, Sheffield United have maintained that they are unsure whether they will sign Evans. But they do feel that the outcry is “mob justice” which pretty much tells you their thoughts on the matter.

They feel that after serving his time — which technically he has not — he has a right to return to his profession as a footballer.

The argument that after his prison sentence he should be allowed to return to work is a valid one. And I agree with it. 

But my position hasn’t changed from what I previously wrote on these pages. As a footballer, he should not be allowed back on the field.

Lee Hughes and Luke McCormick both served time in prison for death by dangerous driving and were allowed to return to football after. Should they have been? No.

Craig Thomson was convicted of preying on girls aged 12 and 14 in 2011 and returned to the game, despite being on the sex offenders list. 

He was released by the Scottish club Hearts due to the criticism from fans and sponsors yet in March of this year he began training with Junior outfit Arniston Rangers in Gorebridge, Midlothian.

Just because these players were able to return it doesn’t mean that two wrongs make a right and Evans should pick up where he left off. Football needs to take a stand now and continue to do so.

People will cite Duncan Ferguson, Marlon King and the other footballers who have spent time in jail for violent crimes. 

Joey Barton has a long history of violence both on and off the pitch. Six months in jail for assault in which he punched one man 20 times and left a teenager with broken teeth. Assaulting players in training and punching players on the pitch. And yet there he is, playing for QPR like he has never broken the law.

They will argue that these players were allowed back in the game and continued to earn a living but I believe they should not have been, especially Barton.

People ask where do we draw the line? What crimes can a player commit before they are asked to leave and never return? How about players don’t commit crimes.

We don’t live in a perfect world and people will make mistakes. But if a person, in this case a footballer, is going to break the law they should be treated like everyone else (barring politicians who really do get away with mass murder).

Yes, they served their time and we are punishing them again but that’s the way the world is. Teachers, police officers, doctors, lawyers are a few jobs that convicted rapists are not allowed to hold and I want professional athlete added to that list.

I actually want a lot more professions added but that is a different matter entirely.

Evans will continue to maintain his innocence and he has every right to do so. But until he shows the slightest bit of remorse he should be kept well clear of football stadiums.

You can argue that someone who is 100 per cent sure that they are innocent will never apologise for what they did. I 100 per cent disagree with that. He knows what he did was wrong and apologised for cheating on his girlfriend. 

Direct that apology towards the victim and then I will be more willing to have an argument about whether he should return. 

If he wants to get back into society, start speaking out against violence against women. Distance yourself from the few idiotic Sheffield United fans who have begun chanting “He shags who he wants,” on the terraces of Bramall Lane.

Condemn those people and let people know you think it is wrong. By doing that he is showing remorse and won’t come across as just another brain-dead footballer who thinks he is above the law.

For those of us who have spoken out against the footballer, we have been met with abuse on the internet. How dare we not want a convicted rapist to play football? Seriously people?

Jessica Ennis-Hill has had rape threats for choosing to not want her name on the stands of Bramall Lane. 

Many people, myself included, have been called a “fucking idiot” and have been reminded that we were not there that night and should check our facts before making up lies.

But we are talking about someone who had a fair trial and was found guilty of rape. He then appealed that decision and his appeal was rejected. In the eyes of the law he is a guilty man.

You are innocent until you are proven guilty. Well, Evans has been proven guilty. But for some people, that doesn’t matter because the victim cannot remember the night and Evans said he didn’t do it.

A lot of guilty people will sit there and say they didn’t commit a crime due to the fact that the woman has no recollection of that night. They will use his defence website as an argument but have you seen that website?

A direct quote from the site is: “The prosecution portrayed Ched and Clayton McDonald as two sexual predators out on the prowl and looking for a victim. At 3am in the morning, Ched was throwing chips to the seagulls, hardly a predator on the prowl.”

No! I don’t care if he was giving food to homeless kids at a charity shelter. That doesn’t mean he didn’t commit the crime. 

The site has a letter from a woman who was raped but her attacker got away with it because “Girls like this [the victim] ruin lives, girls like this mess things up for girls like me, this justice system is corrupted.” This website is corrupt and he needs to be advised to take it down. It is not helping.

The website goes on to let everyone know that Evans has another appeal coming up — which has been fast-tracked — and that the world will realise he is innocent.

If he is found innocent, a whole new debate arrises. But until then, Ched Evans is guilty of rape and I do not want him playing football again.