Ferocious Aardvark wrote:
Really? Well if that's true why did you say "because he might have been a touch off-side or the pass may have been slightly forward", which is what I replied to!
I prefer the current interpretation which is that if they are entering into the spirit of things and making an effort to be back, as opposed to taking the pis.s, the officials treat it as part of the game. In any case they tried it some years back, nobody liked it, and it was quietly binned off.
Seriously, FA, you think "they are entering into the spirit of things and making an effort to be back"?
No, they aren't. What they are doing is the bare minimum, with which they hope to make the referee think, "they are entering into the spirit of things and making an effort to be back". They are making a professional judgement of what they think they can get away with, simple as, and that's not the same.
Play the ball is similar. I know it's just a way to restart after a tackle and so, in the great scheme of things, probably 'not that important', except in the fact that it is part of that balance between attack and defence but the same principle applies to the PTB as to offside. Players know they won't be pinged for not touching the ball with the foot as long as they, "look as though they tried," to put foot on ball. What we have now is players not trying to, 'play the ball', but trying to
look as though they have
tried to play the ball. And you know what - it's rubbish, they just lift up a leg throw it through.
It can be put right. Tell them what will happen, preferably before the season starts, and start penalising those who don't touch with the foot. They all know how to do it. It's probably the first thing they were taught in the under sevens, so there is no reason for anyone to give
any penalties away.
