Newell apologises for sexist remarks

Luton, England:

Luton manager Mike Newell has apologised for his criticism of female referees, saying his remarks were "ill-timed and out-of-order". Luton called Newell's comments about assistant referee Amy Rayner "completely unacceptable" and demanded an explanation before the club's board. Newell's apology on Monday came hours before the board met to discuss his comments, which were made after the club lost 3-2 to Queens Park Rangers in the Football League Championship on Saturday. England's Football Association also will look into Newell's remarks about Rayner. "This is not park football, so what are women doing here?" Newell said in his post-match news conference. "It is tokenism, for the politically correct idiots." The remarks drew a wave of condemnation and led Newell to go live on television to issue an apology. "I regret what I said and I do apologise to the people who I've offended because ... they were ill-timed and out-of-order comments," he said. However, Newell did not retract his remarks. He also said he wouldn't resign. "I very rarely say things that I don't mean but I'm not going to get into a debate about my opinions," Newell told Sky Sports News. "Today, it's an attempt to publicly apologise to anybody I've offended, particularly Amy Rayner." Luton's board issued a statement after its meeting on Monday saying Newell would be asked to explain his comments about Rayner and also his criticism of the club's management. (AP)