'The cash came up to my torso' - tales of a match-fixer

Bookmakers, usually protected and successful profit acknowledgment to margins and finely-tuned odds, were losing connected National League South.

They were seeing floods of money connected definite teams' games from newly-opened accounts located each complete nan world - tipsters who would stake exclusively connected nan English sixth tier and pinch unerring accuracy.

More money was reportedly placed connected nan full goals successful 1 November 2012 National League South crippled than connected nan balanced marketplace for a Champions League lucifer involving Barcelona.

Bookmakers started refusing to return wagers connected immoderate teams, scrubbing them disconnected nan coupon. The Football Association launched an investigation into betting patterns successful nan division.

As nan play came to a close, nan fixing was an unfastened concealed successful immoderate dressing rooms. Fans were suspecting their ain players, accusing them from nan stands.

The business couldn't last. The nett was closing in. Swaibu's last Bromley hole - ensuring they mislaid an April 2013 fixture distant to Maidenhead by 2 clear goals - bordered connected farce.

Swaibu gave their striker a clear tally connected extremity to people nan game's first. Into nan 2nd half, he stayed rooted to nan crushed arsenic they scored again to lead 3-1. A team-mate scored successful nan 82nd infinitesimal to make it 3-2. Two minutes later, Swaibu held a needlessly precocious line, chased backmost aimlessly and allowed Maidenhead to make it 4-2.

An incensed team-mate who wasn't successful connected nan hole was sitting connected nan bench, telling nan head that thing suspicious was unfolding successful beforehand of them.

"It was nan first clip it had been that blatant and evident and I didn't want to look nan dressing room," Swaibu says.

"I was a mouse. The bubble had popped successful that moment.

"When I walked into nan dressing room I couldn't look up. It was silent, everyone looking astatine me.

"The only point I could perceive was nan gaffer - a grown man successful his fifties - weeping.

"I didn't get successful nan shower, I conscionable went consecutive to my car."

Swaibu near nan nine 2 games later, astatine nan extremity of nan season.

He wasn't nan only fixer who realised nan National League South had travel nether excessively overmuch scrutiny.

A clutch of players near Hornchurch - different squad successful nan convention - and travelled astir nan world to play for Southern Stars, a lower-league squad based connected nan outskirts of Melbourne, Australia.

Their presence didn't spell unnoticed. Sportradar - a institution hired to show and support nan integrity of sports events - had suspicions. The players' societal media posts from Australia, featuring royal holidays successful Bali and high-end nightclubs, only heightened them.

The Australian constabulary were tipped disconnected and nan Southern Stars' dressing room, clubhouse and moreover goalposts were rigged pinch hidden microphones.

Undercover officers posed arsenic fans, telephone calls were intercepted and slope transfers examined.

It led to a drawstring of convictions, a clutch of leads and, ultimately, a sting cognition by nan National Crime Agency successful southbound London.

By then, Swaibu could good person been retired of nan game, some ineligible and illegal.

He says he had saved up astir £200,000 from fixing football.

And, astatine 24, playing shot seemed to beryllium over. Two short-term deals pinch Sutton and Whitehawk led nowhere.

"But I was addicted astatine this point, thing was pulling maine backmost in."

One of Swaibu's contacts had been tapped up by a caller group of fixers - a pack trying to break into match-rigging and put together a web of players to propulsion it off.

Swaibu had his suspicions. The caller fixers didn't look to cognize nan rules. They seemed naive and inexperienced, pinch small thought of what was possible.

They dropped names of different match-fixers they had worked with, erstwhile discretion and secrecy were cardinal to Swaibu's erstwhile bosses.

Some were besides white, British and middle-aged, an improbable floor plan for hi-tech gambling conspiracies, invariably leveraged from Asia.

Swaibu wanted to judge though. Because if they were caller to fixing, they could beryllium fleeced.

Swaibu says he took a photograph of his section five-a-side squad and told nan fixers they were players successful his pocket. He invited his caller contacts to a League Two lucifer betwixt AFC Wimbledon and Dagenham and Redbridge and told them it was rigged. It would end, Swaibu said, successful a 1-0 triumph for Wimbledon.