Post-Match Reaction: SAINTS 1-0 West Ham United

[saint1977]

Have seen it several times he would have been very, very unlucky to have had a pen given against him....not a foul in a million years.

 

At least Clattenburg got that right. The Vic decision doesn't get any better when seen on TV although Koeman and Bilic both have a valid point around the scissors nature of it and the fact from RK's perspective that Payet probably doesn't have the acceleration to break on Saints there. Clearly the ref was going to book him and then the pathetic little wimp got bullied by Noble and co. Shouldn't be a referee at any level, pro or semi-pro if he can't make his own decisions. Premier League should demote him to the Evostik leagues until Clattenburg sorts himself out. What Byram did to Bertrand was worse - a quite deliberate stamp - and Byram should have thanked Ryan for not making fuss like Payet did.

 

Anyway, another Clattenburg debacle shouldn't detract from a fantastic backs-to-the-wall win. Delighted for Yoshi after a tough season, whole back 4/5 were immense. One great save from Fraser early on from Reid, otherwise little to do but exudes such an air of calm which was key too. Clasie did well and great workrate from Long. Only downside other than the red card was Pelle but will be going in the summer anyway it seems and still a good squad player for the remainder.

[ALWAYS_SFC]

At least Clattenburg got that right. The Vic decision doesn't get any better when seen on TV although Koeman and Bilic both have a valid point around the scissors nature of it and the fact from RK's perspective that Payet probably doesn't have the acceleration to break on Saints there. Clearly the ref was going to book him and then the pathetic little wimp got bullied by Noble and co. Shouldn't be a referee at any level, pro or semi-pro if he can't make his own decisions. Premier League should demote him to the Evostik leagues until Clattenburg sorts himself out. What Byram did to Bertrand was worse - a quite deliberate stamp - and Byram should have thanked Ryan for not making fuss like Payet did.

 

Anyway, another Clattenburg debacle shouldn't detract from a fantastic backs-to-the-wall win. Delighted for Yoshi after a tough season, whole back 4/5 were immense. One great save from Fraser early on from Reid, otherwise little to do but exudes such an air of calm which was key too. Clasie did well and great workrate from Long. Only downside other than the red card was Pelle but will be going in the summer anyway it seems and still a good squad player for the remainder.

 

Agreed, to many players try to ref the game

[saint1977]

Agreed, to many players try to ref the game

 

Costa today being another example. You can understand players being angry when a ref makes an absolute blooper and won't listen but crowding, eyeballing and general intimidating the ref has become the norm over the last 15-20 years. Man U started it IMO in this country with Keane, Stam etc but most teams seem to do it now. Don't know why officials put up with it.

[scotty]

Costa today being another example. You can understand players being angry when a ref makes an absolute blooper and won't listen but crowding, eyeballing and general intimidating the ref has become the norm over the last 15-20 years. Man U started it IMO in this country with Keane, Stam etc but most teams seem to do it now. Don't know why officials put up with it.

 

 

I agree entirely, but please could I make a heartfelt plea from the saintsweb faithful to refrain from mentioning keane, in any context whatsoever? Any reference to that utter c*nt boils my p*ss, I genuinely detest him.

[Batman]

I agree entirely, but please could I make a heartfelt plea from the saintsweb faithful to refrain from mentioning keane, in any context whatsoever? Any reference to that utter c*nt boils my p*ss, I genuinely detest him.

 

You could hear Rooney the other day against stoke give the ref a volley of abuse when he was pulled up for something

 

How footballers get away with it is just odd.

[scotty]

You could hear Rooney the other day against stoke give the ref a volley of abuse when he was pulled up for something

 

How footballers get away with it is just odd.

 

It's not just that, they're obviously coached to do it to try and gain an advantage. But roy keane is a different animal altogether, why he's still accepted by the media I just don't understand.

[angelman]

FIFA in their wisdom scrapped the 10 yard rule in 2005. While it wasn't used as much as it could or should have been, why they scrapped it I never understood. It works in rugby, and it would cut nonsense out from players with only the captain being able to speak to the ref.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/4637805.stm gives the reason which is pretty pathetic really.

[markr27]

I think some were abusing it to their advantage... i.e. getting a free kick moved to a less threatening area. I do remember one instance of a kick being moved into the penalty area, which meant the wall could go on the goal-line.

[Mr Biscuits]

Putting a mic on the ref would help, the abuse players would get from fans if what they were saying was broadcast would soon stop it.

However, as long as football refs allow players to get away with it it will continue

[scotty]

FIFA in their wisdom scrapped the 10 yard rule in 2005. While it wasn't used as much as it could or should have been, why they scrapped it I never understood. It works in rugby, and it would cut nonsense out from players with only the captain being able to speak to the ref.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/4637805.stm gives the reason which is pretty pathetic really.

 

This.

 

Players who feel they have a grievance should approach the team captain, and not the officials. The captain would assess the situation and pass that grievance on to the ref on behalf of the team.

[alehouseboys]

Putting a mic on the ref would help, the abuse players would get from fans if what they were saying was broadcast would soon stop it.

However, as long as football refs allow players to get away with it it will continue

 

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/video/sport/football/4050849/What-Tony-Adams-said-to-the-ref.html

[angelman]

I think some were abusing it to their advantage... i.e. getting a free kick moved to a less threatening area. I do remember one instance of a kick being moved into the penalty area, which meant the wall could go on the goal-line.

You can put your wall where ever you want to (so long as it isn't within 10 yards of the ball)so can't see how that is an advantage, or were you meaning that the kick came so close to the goal, that it couldn't get up and down?

Edited 7 February, 2016 by angelman

[John Boy Saint]

You can put your wall where ever you want to (so long as it isn't within 10 yards of the ball)so can't see how that is an advantage, or were you meaning that the kick came so close to the goal, that it couldn't get up and down?

That just made me think of a "bizarre" incident earlier this season when the Oppos had conceded a free kick to us just outside the box the ref had put his his squirty cream down at the ball, then paced out his 10 yards and drawn the line in the box, while he was faffing about doing all this the goalie had set his small wall and the players in it were standing ready and settled about 3 yards behind the line. The ref then told the wall to move up to the line placing his hand on one of the players to make him do it. I thought that was a tad strange.

[Lallana's Left Peg]

If I want to watch a sport where players are respectful to officials I'll watch Rubgy. But football is much better and good Ref's won't help it much - if we created a sport where everything was fair and correct it would be boring and rubbish to watch. Half the appeal of football is the batsh*t crazy nature of it, and the officials (their standard of officiating and how players interact with them) is a part of it.

[DT]

Ye Gods

[VectisSaint]

Although I just agree with red for victor, it does not deserve 5 game ban for the 3 sendings off

5 games confirmed

http://www.thefa.com/football-rules-governance/suspensions

[cellone]

Arse

 

Sent from my E6853 using Tapatalk

[Saint_Ash]

Be a good chance for Romeu to show what he can do with a good run in the team. I like him and hopefully he can show we can do well without Vic

Edited 8 February, 2016 by Saint_Ash

[Window Cleaner]

Although I just agree with red for victor, it does not deserve 5 game ban for the 3 sendings off

 

Well it kinda does because those are the rules and he's been warned about discipline already this season both by the club and the FA.,

[Cosmic]

If I want to watch a sport where players are respectful to officials I'll watch Rubgy. But football is much better and good Ref's won't help it much - if we created a sport where everything was fair and correct it would be boring and rubbish to watch. Half the appeal of football is the batsh*t crazy nature of it' date=' and the officials (their standard of officiating and how players interact with them) is a part of it.[/quote']

 

Is tennis boring and rubbish to watch? Besides, treating the officials with a modicum of respect does not mean that all decisions will be correct. It's a massive problem in the game that no governing body has tried meaningfully to address.

 

FIFA in their wisdom scrapped the 10 yard rule in 2005. While it wasn't used as much as it could or should have been, why they scrapped it I never understood. It works in rugby, and it would cut nonsense out from players with only the captain being able to speak to the ref.

 

I also think this rule should come back - the ref should just be able to offer the extra ten yards but the attacking team should have the final say over whether it is enforced.

[Lallana's Left Peg]

Is tennis boring and rubbish to watch? Besides, treating the officials with a modicum of respect does not mean that all decisions will be correct. It's a massive problem in the game that no governing body has tried meaningfully to address..

 

Yes. It's boring to watch until the final or at best the semi-final, and even then it is only ever contested between the same players. Imagine just for a second football was like that

 

The errors Refs make are clearly influenced by the home crowd, players, size of the club and other things (probably even Managers on the sideline). If Ref's got it right all the time then the game loses something. I'm not saying players being respectful to Ref's then mean they get decisions right all the time, but the theatre of the game means a part of it is how players act towards one another and the Ref (rightly or wrongly).

[Pancake]

Yes. It's boring to watch until the final or at best the semi-final, and even then it is only ever contested between the same players. Imagine just for a second football was like that

 

What's that got I do with the respect provided by the participants to the officials?

[Lallana's Left Peg]

What's that got I do with the respect provided by the participants to the officials?

 

Because in tennis the rules are black and white. The ball is either in or it is out, it has either hit the net or it has not. In football many of the rules are open to interpretation, not least because it is a contact sport. When the official has to make a decision based on interpretation rather than having the facts to hand he is open to be influenced because it is impossible for a human to be objective in this situation - we all have inherent biased in our decision making.

 

So because of that players seek to influence refs and that impacts their behaviour. The most common one is when a player is offside. Often he has no idea whether he is or not, but regardless he'll give the lino abuse because he wants to cast doubt in the linos mind (the lino doesn't get to see a replay either remember) so the next time the lino isn't sure and the player may get an advantage.

 

The West Ham players were being professional when they hassled Clattenburg on Saturday. They saw an opportunity to get angry and shout and scream at the Ref and seek to influence his behaviour - and it worked. So if it works why would you stop doing it?

[Pancake]

Because in tennis the rules are black and white. The ball is either in or it is out, it has either hit the net or it has not. In football many of the rules are open to interpretation, not least because it is a contact sport. When the official has to make a decision based on interpretation rather than having the facts to hand he is open to be influenced because it is impossible for a human to be objective in this situation - we all have inherent biased in our decision making.

 

So because of that players seek to influence refs and that impacts their behaviour. The most common one is when a player is offside. Often he has no idea whether he is or not, but regardless he'll give the lino abuse because he wants to cast doubt in the linos mind (the lino doesn't get to see a replay either remember) so the next time the lino isn't sure and the player may get an advantage.

 

The West Ham players were being professional when they hassled Clattenburg on Saturday. They saw an opportunity to get angry and shout and scream at the Ref and seek to influence his behaviour - and it worked. So if it works why would you stop doing it?

 

Still can't see how you tally that with the fact tennis is only good to watch post semi final stage. Surely the same rules and officials are in place then. Your argument makes no sense. Sorry.

[Lallana's Left Peg]

Still can't see how you tally that with the fact tennis is only good to watch post semi final stage. Surely the same rules and officials are in place then. Your argument makes no sense. Sorry.

 

Ah - basically I am saying that without human error in officiating in tennis it means the best players win all the time and when the best players win all the time it makes the sport boring to watch. Ever watched the early rounds of a tennis tournament? Everyone is going through the motions. It feels pointless. Human error in sport (including by officials) makes it more interesting to watch - be that the chance of an upset or big clubs getting decisions etc.

[angelman]

Because in tennis the rules are black and white. The ball is either in or it is out, it has either hit the net or it has not. In football many of the rules are open to interpretation, not least because it is a contact sport. When the official has to make a decision based on interpretation rather than having the facts to hand he is open to be influenced because it is impossible for a human to be objective in this situation - we all have inherent biased in our decision making.

 

So because of that players seek to influence refs and that impacts their behaviour. The most common one is when a player is offside. Often he has no idea whether he is or not, but regardless he'll give the lino abuse because he wants to cast doubt in the linos mind (the lino doesn't get to see a replay either remember) so the next time the lino isn't sure and the player may get an advantage.

 

The West Ham players were being professional when they hassled Clattenburg on Saturday. They saw an opportunity to get angry and shout and scream at the Ref and seek to influence his behaviour - and it worked. So if it works why would you stop doing it?

 

Incorrect.

 

The FA in their document entitled "Respect" clearly state.....

 

- Only the captain can openly ask for clarification of a referee's decision. The includes the period before, during and after a match.

- If any other player challenges the referee, asks questions or harasses the referee about decisions made, they should first be give a public warning. This is providing a player has not committed an offence which clearly falls under Law 12

- If a player, inc the captain, openly harasses or challenges the referee, they should be cautioned and shown a yellow card.

etc

etc

etc

 

I feel that this document is aimed at amateurs really, but the rules are the same for all, regardless of how big your club is. The problem I see is that the big clubs (professional ones) seem to run roughshod over this, and therefore it is too often not pulled up. Anyway, Law 12 (for the 2015-16 season) states....

 

A player who is guilty of dissent by protesting (verbally or non-verbally) against

a referee’s decision must be cautioned.

 

The captain of a team has no special status or privileges under the Laws of the

Game but he has a degree of responsibility for the behaviour of his team.

 

So hassling Clattenburg is not being professional in taking an opportunity, it is flagrantly breaking Law 12 and Clattenburg was too weak to do anything about it. You might split hairs by saying that they aren't arguing his decision, but I wouldn't agree with that.

Edited 8 February, 2016 by angelman

[Lallana's Left Peg]

You can go through the FA rulebook if you want and 80% of it will not be adhered to. That doesn't mean a thing. It's professional because they got away with it and achieved what they wanted. Just like 'buying' a foul is, just like timewasting is etc. It's all a part of the game.

[hutch]

The difference between football and other sports is that most footballers think it is OK to cheat. And are happy to keep on cheating until somebody stops them.

[EBS1980]

5 games confirmed

http://www.thefa.com/football-rules-governance/suspensions

 

We not appealing? Was never a red card but it's the difference between a 0 game ban and 5 game ban it's worth trying!

[Window Cleaner]

We not appealing? Was never a red card but it's the difference between a 0 game ban and 5 game ban it's worth trying!

 

No justification for an appeal at all. Clattenberg warned him verbally at least twice before his gung-ho up yours effort on Payet. Got everything he deserved, just a dunce on occasions.

[JakkoUK]

Think one of the reasons Clattenburg may have given him a red, and probably shouldn't have been a reason to why, is the fact Victor had already made two or three fouls before the tackle that got him his red. Therefore Victor was already on thin ice for being awarded a yellow. So Clattenburg probably added all these up and just gave the straight red. If he hadn't of committed the fouls before hand, he would of been given a yellow. If that makes any sense at all.

[Window Cleaner]

Think one of the reasons Clattenburg may have given him a red, and probably shouldn't have been a reason to why, is the fact Victor had already made two or three fouls before the tackle that got him his red. Therefore Victor was already on thin ice for being awarded a yellow. So Clattenburg probably added all these up and just gave the straight red. If he hadn't of committed the fouls before hand, he would of been given a yellow. If that makes any sense at all.

 

Pretty much, Clattenberg had already warned him at least twice...but he just couldn't control himself.

[Chez]

Think one of the reasons Clattenburg may have given him a red, and probably shouldn't have been a reason to why, is the fact Victor had already made two or three fouls before the tackle that got him his red. Therefore Victor was already on thin ice for being awarded a yellow. So Clattenburg probably added all these up and just gave the straight red. If he hadn't of committed the fouls before hand, he would of been given a yellow. If that makes any sense at all.

That's an interesting theory. I was going to disagree fully, on the basis that you don't tot up niggling fouls before giving a straight red, and most likely he just saw a reckless challenge, but maybe the previous fouls in that game, plus his reputation did go before him a fraction. I thought at the time it was a little unlucky, but equally I could see why Clattenberg went for a red. You just cant throw yourself into tackles any more, which is good and bad. As annoying as it is, at least Wanyama is showing commitment when crossing the white line.

[benjii]

A few things:

 

1) Men's tennis is interesting. Women's tennis is dire but sometimes worth watching for aesthetic reasons.

 

2) I generally think Clattenberg is one of the better refs (Mason and Friend, for example, are habitually worse), however on occasions he can't keep his ego in control and this results in decisions made for the purpose of attracting attention. This inevitably leads to inconsistencies. I didn't think their penalty appeal in the first half was a pen at all and it didn't even make the MotD highlights but that is precisely the sort of decision he might occasionally give to prove what a visionary he is so, in a way, we were lucky.

 

3) Payet's spastic-attack was embarrassing.

 

4) I don't know why the governing bodies don't issue a strict edict at the start of the season that dissent (which includes hounding and shouting at the ref, even if not the accused party oneself - ie. what Noble et al were up to) will be a yellow card every time. It is quite within the authorities to stop intimidation and abusive language within the existing rules so goodness knows why they don't. They must think the players are just too uncouth and matches will end up 8-a-side all the time.

 

5) West Ham is a nasty little club which has won precisely zero major trophies since 1980 so goodness knows why its fans seem to have such a big opinion of themselves, particularly when there are clearly much bigger clubs in the capital.

[derry]

I've given up on referees. They can't even penalise blatant shirt pulling and holding in the penalty area whilst hypocritically penalising the slightest touch or hold elsewhere. At free kicks, except near the goal they are allowed to be taken instantaneously but near the goal they perform their time wasting ritual. In both events if the players don't immediately retreat they should book all encroaching within ten yards, always allow the player to play the ball immediately from the right place except for a penalty and again immediately book any player who doesn't retreat ten yards if an immediate restart is stymied.

 

As for shirt pulling immediate booking and a penalty. Within a month there would be no holding and no need for the referees to hold play up. The Leagues and referees just don't have the balls to apply the rules because the bleating would be ridiculous. The same for players challenging referees. There would be a few short sided games but properly warned in advance there could be no excuse and the game would be drastically improved and probably a lot more goals scored.

[John B]

One of the major problems with football is that managers do not respect referees nearly always blaming them when their teams loses so it is not surprising that players have no respect either

 

Just compare this with Rugby where there is so much more respect and very much less gamemansship

[DT]

That's an interesting theory. I was going to disagree fully, on the basis that you don't tot up niggling fouls before giving a straight red, and most likely he just saw a reckless challenge, but maybe the previous fouls in that game, plus his reputation did go before him a fraction. I thought at the time it was a little unlucky, but equally I could see why Clattenberg went for a red. You just cant throw yourself into tackles any more, which is good and bad. As annoying as it is, at least Wanyama is showing commitment when crossing the white line.

 

I think Clattenberg couldn't see properly because his wig slipped

[Window Cleaner]

One of the major problems with football is that managers do not respect referees nearly always blaming them when their teams loses so it is not surprising that players have no respect either

 

Just compare this with Rugby where there is so much more respect and very much less gamemansship

 

The penalties in Rugby are far more severe aren't they. I mean bans of 10 to 15 weeks are by no means unknown .

[mrfahaji]

I think the play acting just shows such a lack of respect to their fellow professionals. I can't stand diving but can see why players might be so desperate to win that they do it, but clutching your face or rolling around screaming when you've barely been touched is pretty embarrassing and disgusting. I'm not claiming that Saints are in general more honest or decent, but perhaps Payet & Bertrand should be used to show players "this game could have been 11 v 11, or it could have been 10 v 10. Surely we'd all rather the former?"

 

I'd prefer to see a player get up in anger at a bad challenge to bring it to the attention of referees rather than pretending to be hurt. How players can shake hands at the end after actively trying to get the other sent off is beyond me. If a player was faking and I was red carded, I'd want to go over and kick them in the head and say "now I deserve it and you have something to cry about".

[The9]

After losing a challenge in midfield you could see VW go after the player and lunge in, if his timing had been better he would have cleaned him out completely, so the intent was there and a red card probably correct although debatable. The fact that Clattenberg went for a yellow first then changed his mind after WHU player pressure shows at best weak refereeing, and later decisions showed a lack of consistency. That makes him a poor referee, if hes the PL #1 ref is doesn't say a lot for the rest...

 

Having watched it God knows how many times now, he didn't "go after the player" at all, he went for the ball, on the ground, completely missed it, and even so barely made contact with Payet, who only even fell over because the bottom half of a by-then prone and near-stationary Wanyama was then stuck between his legs. It was a mistimed lunge, but Payet actually had to run into him for it to even be a foul.

[Whitey Grandad]

Having watched it God knows how many times now, he didn't "go after the player" at all, he went for the ball, on the ground, completely missed it, and even so barely made contact with Payet, who only even fell over because the bottom half of a by-then prone and near-stationary Wanyama was then stuck between his legs. It was a mistimed lunge, but Payet actually had to run into him for it to even be a foul.

As compared with Byram's stamp on Bertrand ' ankle. Clattenburg made great show of claiming that the challenge was on the ground.

[The9]

As compared with Byram's stamp on Bertrand ' ankle. Clattenburg made great show of claiming that the challenge was on the ground.

 

Which of course if it HAD been on the ground, would have been a much worse tackle anyway, as he went clear over the ball, and Bertrand's foot would have had to have been planted and he could potentially have had his leg/ankle broken.

[verlaine1979]

Watching it on the stream, I didn't think Wanyama deserved more than a yellow, but seeing replays, the studs of both boots are showing as he follows through on the tackle. You don't have to actually break someone's ankle for it to be classified as dangerous play, and he deserved to go. Byram should've gone too, but was fortunate insofar as neither he nor Bertrand went to ground, making the whole incident look a bit less serious than VW sliding for a couple of yards with both feet off the deck.

[St_Tel49]

The difference between football and other sports is that most footballers think it is OK to cheat. And are happy to keep on cheating until somebody stops them.

 

In the world of LLP that's OK. If it wasn't it would automatically be boring.

[markr27]

You can put your wall where ever you want to (so long as it isn't within 10 yards of the ball)so can't see how that is an advantage, or were you meaning that the kick came so close to the goal, that it couldn't get up and down?

 

Yes, the ball was moved closer to the goal, inside the penalty area in fact.

The wall was then pushed back into the goalmouth as a result, in fact it may even have been behind the keeper!

[The9]

Watching it on the stream, I didn't think Wanyama deserved more than a yellow, but seeing replays, the studs of both boots are showing as he follows through on the tackle. You don't have to actually break someone's ankle for it to be classified as dangerous play, and he deserved to go. Byram should've gone too, but was fortunate insofar as neither he nor Bertrand went to ground, making the whole incident look a bit less serious than VW sliding for a couple of yards with both feet off the deck.

 

You don't even have to make contact, which is just as well for Clattenburg, as he barely did. At no point did Wanyama have "both feet off the deck", he slid with his right foot outstretched and his left leg underneath him. When he swung and missed the ball with his right leg, his left leg came around in front of him so it wasn't trapped under his body as his momentum stopped, so he appeared as if sitting with his legs out. Payet ran into the swinging leg whilst trying to get to the ball, and Wanyama's swinging leg AND his left leg ended up between Payet's legs. Nothing from the minimal contact with Wanyama caused Payet to thrash upside-down like he did other than Payet's desire to make it look as bad as possible.

[Lallana's Left Peg]

In the world of LLP that's OK. If it wasn't it would automatically be boring.

 

In my world if the system allows you to cheat then why wouldn't you? There are many parts of being a professional footballer that are entirely unprofessional. But the game allows it.

 

Answer me this then. If other sports like Rugby have managed to introduce such a strict punishment system for abuse to officials and the players adhere to it (mostly), then why can't football? They can - make it a yellow card at the Ref's discretion for any foul and abusive language, or any view that a player has cheated or attempted to influence them. State you are going to do it and then do it - players will soon learn and stop it. But they haven't. Why is that?

[verlaine1979]

You don't even have to make contact, which is just as well for Clattenburg, as he barely did. At no point did Wanyama have "both feet off the deck", he slid with his right foot outstretched and his left leg underneath him. When he swung and missed the ball with his right leg, his left leg came around in front of him so it wasn't trapped under his body as his momentum stopped, so he appeared as if sitting with his legs out. Payet ran into the swinging leg whilst trying to get to the ball, and Wanyama's swinging leg AND his left leg ended up between Payet's legs. Nothing from the minimal contact with Wanyama caused Payet to thrash upside-down like he did other than Payet's desire to make it look as bad as possible.

 

I watched it again on the off-chance that I'd missed something, but you're wrong. As Wanyama's legs slide between Payet's legs, the studs of both boots are clearly visible (if you want to check for yourself, it's the second slow-mo angle on MOTD). Doesn't really matter whether the challenge was ill-intentioned or just poorly executed, if you end up with both legs outstretched and you so much as clip the other player, 9 times out of 10 you're going to get sent off for dangerous play.

[Sheaf Saint]

In my world if the system allows you to cheat then why wouldn't you? There are many parts of being a professional footballer that are entirely unprofessional. But the game allows it.

 

Answer me this then. If other sports like Rugby have managed to introduce such a strict punishment system for abuse to officials and the players adhere to it (mostly), then why can't football? They can - make it a yellow card at the Ref's discretion for any foul and abusive language, or any view that a player has cheated or attempted to influence them. State you are going to do it and then do it - players will soon learn and stop it. But they haven't. Why is that?

 

Because PL football is much less a sport and more of a spectacle these days. Every bit of drama and controversy creates headlines and helps to sell its popularity to the masses.

[sadoldgit]

Trust the anti Yoshi band are posting apologies?? Doubt it somehow! He is a very good squad player, not the first choice but does his job when needed. What better player would be happy to be reserve squad player?

 

Also, those attaching VW - it was never a red in a million years - yellow for sure but not red - no contact and looked bad on a very slippery wet pitch. And if that was a red, what about the WH player that tackled from the back and made heavy contact - how is that not a red from the same ref???

 

Not going to apologise for having a pop at him for giving away soft goals just because he had a good game the other day. And players shouldn't be happy about being reserves.