A TALENTED former Ayrshire footballer who dodged jail “by the skin of his teeth” for selling cocaine has again avoided custody after failing to complete a community-based sentence. 

Stephen Cargill, from Cumnock, was ordered last year to do 300 hours of unpaid work – the maximum permitted under the law – after admitting supplying the class A drug over a period of almost six months.  

Cargill, whose football CV includes stints playing for Maybole and Girvan, was put on a community payback order (CPO) last July after pleading guilty to supplying the drug at his home address in Barshare Road between July 1 and December 18, 2020.  

The order also includes three years of social work supervision.

The 33-year-old returned to Ayr Sheriff Court recently to answer for the breach of the CPO - and was told it might be in his interests to speak to a solicitor.

When he appeared again the following week for the breach, his defence solicitor explained: "This seems to be a combination of two factors related to childcare and work commitments." 

Sheriff Mhairi MacTaggart said: "Mr Cargill, I appreciate there are practical difficulties, but this was an indictment matter concerning the supply of drugs.

"You were very lucky to get order. The punishment is the unpaid work. [Social work] supervision is the easy bit. 

"If you can't complete the order, it will have a devastating effect on your family.

"Get the work done."