Soccer

Having watched it a few more times, I'll admit it may not have been a
real push. However, what triggered the long post was this from you
Larry:
"He can do it all he wants in a Red shirt as long as....
1. He doesn't get caught
2. Scores.

We've been too nice for too long. We can apologise for it afterwards."

Then it comes out that you hadn't even seen the incident. So I just
wanted to say I couldn't agree with the above view because the player
in question plays for Liverpool.

> Don't know what kind of game you're hoping to see, but football is a
> physical game. If there's contact, it's up to the officials to spot it
> and call it.

Of course it's a physical game and it's the ref's job to spot it. I'm
saying something else here. The game has changed for worse. Think back
to the days of Tommy Smith, Souness et al. There were leg breaking
tackles but there was none of this cheating where players would
pull/push/kick/dive in the hope that they wouldn't get caught esp.
when the ref isn't looking. I interpreted Carroll's push as cheating
(like I said, it looks like I was wrong) and that's what I am against.
Your response made me think you condone it as long as he doesn't get
caught. I may have overreacted, apologies :) But it has to be wiped
out of football.

There are probably a dozen incidents in every game where
> there's a foul committed and nothing's given.

I think you're referring to what Keith calls the ref's interpretation.
Is it a foul or not? Does it merit a yellow or not? You are right,
some things go unnoticed and sometimes soft play gets penalised.

> Fouls/Pushing/Pulling is all part of the game, always has been, and
> hopefully always will be. What's you're suggesting would kill the sport
> stone dead.

Of course they will be part of the game but hopefully they will be
done in the spirit of fairplay and not with malice. Surely, you would
agree that there is a lot of difference between an Alonso late tackle
and this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgangZy4Ob0
The first is part and parcel of the game but the second, not.

> You normally talk a lot of sense Ilker, but this time you're miles off.

There's always a one off :) Maybe it's the hangover effect. It was my
birthday and 20th wedding anniversary yesterday. I may have had a few
too many :)

ilker