The new season kicked off with the game trying to rectify its image, with a respect campaign. Unsightly scenes in the Newcastle and Arsenal opener and the Newcastle and Sunderland derby have characterised the new campaign, and quelled any notion of respect being a feature of this season. Intensity and passion have always been part of the English game but at what point do they go to far, and should we encourage the sort of handbags we have become accustomed to, to maintain the games passion?
Graham Poll last weekend stated that he believed Howard Webb had done an excellent job of refereeing the Tyne-Wear derby. It is one of the biggest derby games of the season, and both sides put in full blooded performances and didn’t hold back against their local rivals. It was always going to be a difficult game for any referee to manage, and Howard Webb instead of sending off about four players for unsavoury incidents-which could have easily warranted a red card-chose to let the game flow. Should we really be praising his performance though? I am all for not putting the breaks on the game, and for the ref interrupting as little as possible, but there has to be a line somewhere, as the infringements we are regularly seeing go too far. If the line is crossed, then punishment is deserved, regardless of whether the referee thinks it will affect the spectacle of the game.
Week on week we are seeing the same infringements at every level of the game, diving, fisticuffs between players, and general gamesmanship and cheating to gain any advantage possible for your side. Sure it’s great to see footballers that are passionate, and want to win, but what lengths do you go to achieve this? Bringing the game into disrepute, for the sake of showing your passion for your side is clearly going too far.
Real Madrid and Barcelona clashes always bring a beautiful and exciting spectacle on the field, but the last few encounters have descended into ugly scenes. So the teams are passionate, desperate to beat their main rivals, and the encounters are tense ones, but at what point does it go too far? The scuffle that occurred in their most recent encounter, was simply embarrassing for football and did not show the game in a good light. There are plenty of other ways to maintain the games passion, and behaviour of that sort is not the way.
I am all for the referee trying to keep his interventions to a minimum, but most people just want to watch the football, and though the constant handbags can be entertaining and a talking point, there is a clear line between it being small niggling offences and overstepping the mark. It isn’t pleasant to see week in week out, and it needs to be stamped out of the game, by setting a precedent. The Barton-Gervinho incident on the opening day, was a clear example of this. Yes, the referee was right to send off Gervinho, as you cannot raise your hands to another, but the antagonistic way Barton grabbed Gervinho off the floor, and then the theatrical way he fell to the floor to get Gervinho sent off also deserved to be punished. Barton said he was just highlighting that Gervinho had dived, and that he was sick of players trying to cheat, and bringing the game into disrepute, but there are far better ways to go about it than he did.
Players should be allowed to show passion on the field, it is part of the game after all, and there is nothing better than seeing someone give 100% for their side, but when it’s going the way of constant abuse of referees, horror tackles and unsightly incidents against others teams players then a line has been crossed. The opening days incidents have set a precedent for the rest of the season, and it is unlikely to be the last showing of handbags this season. It is unpleasant to see on the football field, and passion shouldn’t be an excuse for some of the excesses that have become all too familiar in the beautiful game.
Written by Lauren Rutter for FootballFancast.com. Should we encourage handbags to maintain the passion in the game? Let me know your thoughts below or follow me on Twitter
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