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Speaker: KICK IT! End of Act One

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  • George Darroch,

    Tussock says:

    That youtube clip's a classic, Giovanni. You can see Suarez kick the ball too far around the goalie as his opportunity to chip is blocked, his eyes immediately drop to the goalie's foot, he drags his own foot into it, lands squarely, twists 180 degrees, and falls down in "agony".

    Giovanni says:

    Had he stayed on his feet, he would have scored an easy goal.

    I look at the clip (30"-35") again, and it looks to me like the Suarez deflect was heading well away from the goal. However, he could have ran around and got the ball into the goal - we'll never know.

    WLG • Since Nov 2006 • 2264 posts Report Reply

  • vangam,

    I guess I'm just being driven spare by a game where it seems that any contact between players followed by a dive, no matter how incidental or unintentional, is awarded at least free kick.

    Yes, it is very frustrating. The game would be considerably enhanced with an injection of overall honesty, especially when you consider how many goals have been scored from such shameless deception. I'm reminded of Slovenia's only goal against NZ in our last warm-up match.

    And havent we been complaining about this in soccer for at least 30 years? In all that time, FIFA haven't shown the slightest interest in taking steps to improve the game.

    Rangiora • Since Jun 2007 • 103 posts Report Reply

  • Edward Siddle,

    The other element of the Cahill send-off is that by that stage of the game it was really obvious the ref was card happy. The decision was hardly out of keeping with what has gone before (Özil's was probably justified though the guy did take a swipe at his legs before he went down in a heap). So Cahill should have probably adapted his play to suit. Secondly, his coach had already bawled him out after the friendly with New Zealand in Melbourne for being reckless, specifically warning him that challenges like that would result in send-offs in the Cup. And so it proved. No sympathy here.

    Since Germany are in action again in a few hours, here's something I have shamelessly stolen from a recent Guardian Joy of Six - the 1994 German World Cup song, featuring 'simulator' in chief Juergen Klinsmann.
    http://www.myvideo.de/watch/6826740/Village_People_Far_Away_In_America

    other songs can be seen here:
    http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2010/apr/30/joy-of-six-awful-world-cup-songs

    Wellington • Since Sep 2008 • 54 posts Report Reply

  • Peter Darlington,

    Gio's right on the Suarez chat. It's reasonably clear cut and it's an automatic red card.

    Suarez is actually a very handy player and just like Ronaldo he cops his share of highly dodgy challenges. The 'fall easy' accusations need to be tempered against the fact the best players are getting clattered all the time. Someone like Tevez doesn't tend to drop and that's part of the reason he's a bloody legend but in many ways the kick and fall is like a chicken and egg, one thing leads to another.

    There's also the matter of 'guile'. Much harder to defend but if you're clever and the defender is a hopeless pile of bricks, it's in your interest to make him look stupid. In latin football, keeping the ball is a macho issue, more important than scoring goals, and what stems from this is the culture of fooling the defender. I think the penalty drawing has probably come out of this.

    Nelson • Since Nov 2006 • 949 posts Report Reply

  • vangam,

    The 'fall easy' accusations need to be tempered against the fact the best players are getting clattered all the time

    Cry me a river (as my teenage son is so fond of saying.) Isn't that why we have referees - to police the game? And as far as I can tell, they seem to do a pretty good job on that score. Let the referees police that part of the game and get the players to forget about deceiving the ref, the crowd and the viewers. It is a hangover from the pre-television days: when teams could get away with blatant thuggery because nobody had a record of what occured. Today every other sport has modernised to take account of the greater accountability that televsion has introduced, but not soccer.

    Rangiora • Since Jun 2007 • 103 posts Report Reply

  • giovanni tiso,

    Isn't that why we have referees - to police the game? And as far as I can tell, they seem to do a pretty good job on that score.

    And yet apparently they are so easily deceived by the players' theatrics. Make up your mind.

    Wellington • Since Jun 2007 • 7473 posts Report Reply

  • Pete Sime,

    Dunedin • Since Apr 2008 • 171 posts Report Reply

  • Peter Darlington,

    Ha ha, just reading back over my predictions so far. I'm such a crack up. Hope my streak continues for the NZ pick :)

    Nelson • Since Nov 2006 • 949 posts Report Reply

  • vangam,

    And yet apparently they are so easily deceived by the players' theatrics. Make up your mind.

    The choices are not mutually exclusive.

    Rangiora • Since Jun 2007 • 103 posts Report Reply

  • Richard Irvine,

    This famous one from 2006 is probably comparable to the Suarz incident, although in a much more pressured situation. In both cases I think the players could have probably carried on, even though they were clipped, but because the defenders have gone down in the box, with studs up, and made contact, the refs have no choice.

    I had this to say at the time.

    Auckland • Since Dec 2006 • 242 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    The whole simulation thing is notoriously difficult to adjudicate... At any rate, it's quite rare to be able to rule conclusively that somebody took a dive, even with the technology, so the occasional heavy penalties are a bit too hit and miss to be effective.

    Officiating in any sport is about making difficult decisions, and diving calls should be carefully used and only rarely when the official is quite confident. But if referees made occasional calls when they were sure that the player dived, you'd see a lot less of the players doing it and more actual football being played.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • giovanni tiso,

    But if referees made occasional calls when they were sure that the player dived

    They do. And it's an automatic yellow.

    Wellington • Since Jun 2007 • 7473 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    They do. And it's an automatic yellow.

    It seems to need to become a little more common. It's clearly pretty prevalent through the game:

    Though mostly what has disappointed me watching the football isn't what I would call diving (going down when you didn't need to) but feigning injury. Yeah sure, there was competition, you went down, get back up and play the game you overdramatic shit.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • giovanni tiso,

    It's clearly pretty prevalent through the game:

    Groan. Yawn.

    Wellington • Since Jun 2007 • 7473 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha,

    I wish that clip were less accurate. Who decided that drama queens improved the game? And would they put quite so much effort in that direction if the rules were changed so they could focus on, oh I don't know, scoring fecking goals perhaps.

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha,

    Having said which, I enjoyed last night's match far more now that my expectations about the game have been adjusted.

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha,

    More training video (h/t @hdpaonenews)

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • Ross Mason,

    More on the
    ball
    :

    Seems the transition from turbulent to laminar flow is a fraction quicker than the last WC ball.

    More goals??? Rid the game of off side. It transformed hockey. AND has not resulted in more aerial play that everyone argued would happen. Imagine, the whole field now being available. It would stretch the defence, increase the space and speed it up. No lines of fullbacks, no off side traps.

    Upper Hutt • Since Jun 2007 • 1590 posts Report Reply

  • Ross Mason,

    Fall baby, fall...Damn it.

    Hey Gio, How did you know you were going to be on TV?

    Upper Hutt • Since Jun 2007 • 1590 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha,

    Football World Cup rankings from NY Times.

    Argentina in with a grin - and it wasn't just my imagination that the All Whites hardly touched the ball except in defense, then.

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha,

    More goals??? Rid the game of off side.

    Yes please

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

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