Recklessness, bigotry, a new boss, hope for the bereaved
Football matches can often hinge on a moment. On Saturday, had Leon Osman scored to put Everton 2 up on the stroke of half time, its hard to imagine the game ending in anything other than an away win. In his post match interview Tony Pulis correctly stated that Osman’s miss was the turning point. Having taken the lead out of the blue with Ryan Shawcross’ own goal, a second at that stage would have been difficult for Stoke to come back from. Like the opening goal, our equaliser was rather fortunate. It was a good ball forward by Shawcross and decent header by Kenwyne Jones but you really don’t expect a goalkeeper to be caught wrongfooted as Tim Howard was. Despite that, it’d be inaccurate to suggest we weren’t worthy of a point. As a spectacle it lacked style but both sides displayed great endeavour and a big appetite for the game. Overall it was an evenly contested game between two competitive teams. Most of the post match publicity has understandably focussed on Fellaini’s headbutt on Ryan Shawcross. To his credit David Moyes said his player deserved a ban. Fellaini’s violent attack was reckless on several levels. Two combative teams playing an evenly matched contest yet he chose to jeopardise his teams chances with his mindless assault… Fellaini knows he’s a very important player for the team. The other baffling aspect is that it wasn’t just an instinctive response. Fellaini knew exactly what he was doing. Before the butt he actually sneaked a quick look at the ref to make sure it wouldn’t be seen. Did he really think he could get away with it? Surely he’s fully aware that every moment of every match is filmed. Everton’s impressive first half of the season has seen them challenging for a top four place… they could also be well placed for an FA Cup run. As Saturday’s game hinged on Osman’s miss, Everton’s season could hinge on Fellaini’s idiocy, and his manager deserves better.
Fans of Zenit St Petersburg have asked their club not to buy any black or gay players. The plea was carried out by way of a letter which contains one of the most self contradictory statements on record… “We’re not racists but we see the absence of black players at Zenit as an important tradition,”. Their misguided request is steeped in bigotry. The clumsy attempt to justify the prejudice serves only to highlight how flawed their entire philosophy actually is. One of the reasons our game is still blighted by this venomous hate is the refusal of ruling bodies to take strong decisive action. Despite playing the usual vacuous superficial lip service, FIFA decided back in 2010 that the votes to decide the 2018 World Cup hosts must not be influenced in any way by the subject of racism. So what was the point of that campaign they have been running? Wouldn’t the threat of being cast aside in the World Cup bid have been be a just action and a deterrent?
Brazil’s Sao Paulo were awarded the Copa Sudamericana title on their home ground, after Argentinian opponents Tigre refused to return to the field for the second half. Trailing 2-0 Tigre stayed in the dressing room claiming to have been physically attacked and threatened with guns by security staff… the referee awarded the game to Sao Paolo. Surprisingly a major incident like this didn’t actually receive much media attention. The scale of the story is exacerbated further bearing in mind Brazil will be hosting the World Cup in 18 months. Had a similar brawl occurred in Europe it’s hard to believe the press would be so oblivious.
After eleven games of the A-League season Rado Vidosic has been replaced as head coach of Brisbane Roar by Mike Mulvey. Last time out there were encouraging signs when Roar drew 1-1 away at Melbourne victory. That may give views of Vidosic’s removal an unrealistic tint. The fact is that since taking over from Ange Postecoglou Brisbane have undoubtedly deteriorated and currently sit second from bottom on the table. It’s only a year since this group of players became the most formidable team in the history of Australian sport. The key lesson to be remembered is that Fabio Capello and Bob Paisley are exceptions that prove the rule…. promoting the assistant manager to the top job rarely brings success. The club have made a big point of emphasising that Vidosic was not actually ‘sacked’ as he has been moved into the technical director’s role. That may be the case but had Roar won the last six games would the same step had been taken?
The original inquest findings have been quashed and a new inquest is to take place into the deaths of the 96 who perished at Hillsborough. This is a huge step towards justice and testament to the work of the Hillsborough Family Support group. We can hope this news can bring the bereaved some comfort at what must be a deeply traumatic time of year for them.