As the Football League moves closer to its own version of the NFL's 'Rooney Rule', Brendon Batson says equality is lacking in the game.
As one of West Brom's 'Three Degrees', Brendon Batson blazed a trail for black players in English football - now he wants to see the barriers to coaching and management eroded.
The Football League is taking steps to implement its own version of the 'Rooney Rule', a measure adopted by the NFL to encourage greater inclusivity of black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) candidates within coaching and other senior roles.
It is a move that Batson - who moved to The Hawthorns in 1978 and, along with teammates Cyrille Regis and Laurie Cunningham was dubbed one of 'The Three Degrees' by manager Ron Atkinson - feels is essential to ensuring a meaningful change in an environment that has stifled the progress of BAME players into the domain of coaching, including himself.