NEWCASTLE United’s commercial relationship with Wonga – a payday lender, charging huge interest rates – has always been an uncomfortable union. Legally, there has not been a case to answer. Ethically, there have been big question marks over St James’s Park.

The Magpies-Wonga partnership feels even more dubious in the light of the loan company being ordered to pay £2.6m in compensation for duping its customers.

Threatening letters were sent from law firms which didn’t exist. It was a disgusting, shameful way to do business and, even if the practice has now been stopped, the Wonga brand is damaged. By association, that means Newcastle United’s credibility has been undermined.

It is good news that the Financial Conduct Authority has uncovered these unscrupulous dealings and ordered money to be returned to those who were callously ripped off. As Darlington MP Jenny Chapman says, why not make Wonga pay the compensation at their usual interest rates?

But isn’t it plain and simple fraud to falsify legal letters for financial gain? Why haven’t Wonga’s bosses being brought before the criminal courts in the same way Newcastle United supporters would be punished if they were found guilty of conning a financial institution with fake documents?

It is a shabby episode which underlines the importance of credit unions and we reiterate our offer of last year to provide them with free advertising. We must support them as much as possible to give people a decent alternative to the Wongas of the world.

In the meantime, Newcastle United really should give serious thought to whether it wants to be part of a deal which leads to football- loving children running around in shirts bearing the name of a company that was prepared to lie to squeeze every last penny out of the vulnerable and the desperate.