Posts by George Darroch
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Edit: I can't be bothered either.
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I think it's time I posted something positive!
Did anyone else see DPR Korea v Portugal? It was almost tragic to watch the Koreans be so thoroughly battered, but the beauty of Portugese play well and truly made up for it
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What, no gloating about the (cursed) luck of the Irish causing the French to self-destruct?
Hmmm, some consolation for that awful qualifier.
I think my vision of the game is very much shaped by the fact that video-replays, and video-refereeing are part and parcel of my sport watching experience, and have been for a very long time. I don't like things that detract from the flow of the game, and would be the first one to object to their introduction during play. But reviewing and striking out goals that clearly resulted from deliberate hand-balls? Who could object to that?
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The actual physical reality of the helmet is another. To put it simply, helmets are a pain to carry around. They're impractical to attach to your bike (if you lock it to the frame, they're just at dog-urination level), and they're a bit annoyingly shaped for carrying around in a bag. When you're not wearing one, a helmet is another bloody thing to have to lug around/look after.
And they get wet. You either have to lug it round indoors ("look at me! I'm a cyclist!") or leave it on your bike in the elements.
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As I understand it, the major issue with the ball is its surface.
It's specially designed with millions of tiny grooves on the surface. As on a golf-ball, these mean that turbulence caused by drag of air against the surface is reduced. A reduction in the number of seams, from 32 (to 16 in 2006), to 8 also decreases drag.
Normally a player can get the ball to spin by applying pressure unevenly to the ball with a kick, and this spin increases the drag. Because one side of the spinning ball is rotating into the wind, and the other with it, the ball curves. A ball with less drag curves a lot less, and continues in a straight line over defenders or over the posts. This is a problem for players, and particularly those taking penalties and corners.
The upside of this is that we drew with Italy, who were unable to score from their multitude of corner kicks. It also helped the goalkeeper against powerful long-balls.
I love the Jabulani.
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And I am also reminded of Australia and the Grosso penalty 4 years ago. At the time I recall a european friend saying that perceived footballing injustice can fuel a team and a nation for decades to come - its an important part of a relatively 'new' football nation building a lasting footballing legacy and history :)
Oh, they're still upset about that here.
For what it's worth these things do make for a more difficult contest to watch, but things are what they are, and as Richard said, it's not going to change. Just like doping and cycling - it's not always a fair contest, but it's still enjoyable to watch.
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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.
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As I was trying to say earlier, there are circumstances in which it is okay to dive - for instance the Mexico penalty - and it's still a foul.
I've come around to this opinion about that penalty, actually, thanks to you and that referee blog...
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Hmmm. I've just found this blog. The calls in the games so far make more context when they're explained and rated in this way.
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You're right that, according to the rules, that was a foul, and since it was performed in a way that could have stopped a goal counts as a professional foul, and thus a red card must be handed out.
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.
I also have to say that I find the reckless intrusion of referees into rugby also odious. The difference there is that it rarely has anything like the influence over the outcome of a game.