QuoteThe thing that turns me off football is the behaviour of so many players, in particular the lack of respect and aggressive behaviour towards match officials.   

You'd have loved the women's rugby match the BBC screened on the Red Button at the weekend.


The quality was . . . not great to be honest, but at the first penalty conceded by Bristol, one of the props gave some chat back to the referee - as she sees the top men's internationals do every week - who promptly marched Bristol back 10 metres.

Then she walked away shaking her head sarcastically, so the ref marched them back another 10 metres.

Rugby being reffed as I remember it from schooldays - loved it!

Currently in Marrakech, it was insane here yesterday   

There are parts of the world where football can have an amazing positive effect.

Quote from: Raider4 on 02 December 2022, 08:03:40 PMYou'd have loved the women's rugby match.......

I've watched quite a bit and the skills are often every bit as good as men's rugby and why shouldn't they be?  Rhetorical question.

The only player allowed to talk to a referee is the team captain.  They ought to import some of Rugby Union's discipline into Football but the will to reform the game doesn't seem to be there.

Quote from: Big Insect on 02 December 2022, 02:14:29 PMHowever, I don't decry football fans their pleasure in the game, I just wish that the media didn't stuff it down all of our throats, as if we are all equally interested/infatuated etc.

We are freaks for not being interested

https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/world-cup/world-cup-england-v-sweden-martin-keown-reading-books-get-a-life-bbc-a8436441.html

Quote from: John Cook on 03 December 2022, 02:39:44 AMThey ought to import some of Rugby Union's discipline into Football but the will to reform the game doesn't seem to be there.

Definitely but as you say, they don't seem to want to.  The harassing of the refs could be fixed in a matter of weeks if they just started dishing out red cards to anyone being abusive.  Same for diving too, send it to VAR, if they've dived then they're off.

I remember some collectable coins (Green Shield stamps or petrol coupons?) from the early 1970's for the English First Division as it was then, if my memory serves me correctly.

As for the refs in football, I remember Nigel Owens (Welsh rugby ref) being asked how he would ref a football game. I believe he answered along the lines that there would be no players left after 10 minutes or so!

Rugby: A game for thugs played by gentlemen.
Fottball: A game for gentlemen played by thugs.

Don't do kickie-ball, but I do like an informative map.

Quite a map

It is quite instructive! Though I would have liked the colours to have a bit more of an obvious progression to them. 

I saw a headline the other day around how there are so many good African players, but so few good African national teams. This map rather reinforces the later point. 

It feels unlikely this World Cup will change the map much. As whilst the group stages through up a number of surprises. The first knock-out stage has gone very much to historic expectations. 

QuoteDon't do kickie-ball, but I do like an informative map.

And they're going to need a new colour for winning three, as both of the finalists are, yet again, previous winners  .