Listening to MNC last night got me thinking. They were discussing the fact that most peopl

e (i.e. fans, pundits, managers) don't really know what the rules are anymore- what is handball? what is offside? what is a reckless challenge? etc.
Of course, referees know the rules because they bloody have to, but the other people involved in the game need to know and understand them too, otherwise we will all eventually lose interest.

I am not a rugby expert, but during the tv coverage of the recent WC, there was absolute clarity about the rules and why referees had made certain decisions.
In football, there is increasingly less clarity about refereeing decisions (not the referees' faults BTW)- you only have to look at how long is spent discussing them on MOTD etc. VAR has not helped this situation one bit- you could argue it's made it worse. Yes, real time mistakes are now put right (sometimes anyway) but the spectator experience is damaged as a result.

Not sure what the answer is, but I feel we need one.

(apologies for all the split infinitives BTW)

x

Posted By: Nelsons final flanel, Nov 7, 14:50:45