Boro monster Aliadiere gets a longer ban than Martin Taylor

Posted on February 26th, 2008 in Idiots, The FA, discipline by Left back

It was referenced below but the sending off of Boro’s Jeremie Aliadiere could not have been more different than that of Martin Taylor for his shocking tackle on Arsenal’s Eduardo.

Yes, we all know you can’t ‘raise your hands’, as if the simple act of raising your hands would instantly result in a shattered jaw for the opponent, but three games for what he did was very harsh.

Boro appealed, the appeal was rejected and now Aliadiere has to serve an extra game for making a ‘frivolous appeal’.

So, let’s get this in context: Jeremie Aliadiere will miss 4 games because he ‘raised his hands’, not because of a punch, an elbow or anything that might really hurt a player. Martin Taylor gets 3 games after his brutal challenge put another player out of the game for 9 months.

If I were Boro I’d appeal again and I’d want to know exactly how anybody with a brain in their head can justify Aliadiere spending more time on the sidelines than Martin Taylor. Can anybody, no matter what team they support or what their opinion of Taylor’s challenge, possibly justify that? No, they cannot.

Just more evidence that the disciplinary system is absolutely fucked up. It’s making an absolute mockery of football and unless more is done to punish real violent conduct then there will be more Eduardos.

The ‘daylight’ rule needs to be put to bed

Posted on October 1st, 2007 in Managers, Media, The FA by stopsatgreen

There’s no clear daylight between Freddie and the defender. Some you get, some you don’t, but it’s not offside.

Alan Curbishley

Let me just state for the record that I think that Ljungberg was marginally onside for the disallowed goal, but the decision wasn’t as clear as everyone seems to be saying. However, I have a problem with Curbishley’s comment here:

THERE IS NOT & HAS NEVER BEEN A ‘DAYLIGHT’ RULE. I’m not sure who started this; someone mentioned the FA were considering it, the media picked it up and it’s been repeated ad nauseam ever since. It was never implemented. The FA clarified this five years ago.

You’d think a football manager would make an effort to know the rules of the game he’s operating in, wouldn’t you?

Terry thinks he’s above the law

Posted on September 25th, 2007 in Refs, The FA, cheats by Left back

Who ate all the pies makes a good point about John Terry’s behaviour in the United v Chelsea match.

In times past we have criticised teams like Man United and players like Roy Keane for their aggressive approach to referees. Remember Keane’s vein bulging as he screamed at Andy D’Urso? However, they are nothing to Terry and Chelsea who have been getting worse and worse in recent seasons, and now it’s at a point where Chelsea players are almost constantly putting hands on the official.

Terry’s attempt to snatch the red card out of Mike Dean’s hand was childish and pathetic but also the action of somebody who now has no respect for the man in the middle. It’s like he is trying to decide what is right and wrong, like he’s trying to overrule the official. It’s arrogant and very, very wrong.

Nothing will happen though. The FA just don’t have the balls to punish an England captain the way he should be punished.

Updated: As suspected, Terry gets away with it.

Can of worms

Posted on September 5th, 2007 in Injuries, International, The FA by Left back

Steven Gerrard is struggling with a toe injury. England want to give him a pain killing injection so he can play in the Euro qualifiers.

Now, if I was Liverpool Football Club I’d recall Gerrard immediately and if the FA refused I would line up legal action should Gerrard miss games for his club because of the injection. Let’s remember, the injection will do nothing to help the injury heal. It will simply prevent Gerrard from feeling the pain and he could very easily do himself more damage because of it.

I know Gerrard is an important player but it’s completely wrong for the FA to put him at more risk for their own needs. They do not pay his wages therefore they should have no input or influence over how his injuries are treated.

Newcastle sued the FA over Michael Owen’s World Cup injury and that was a mere accident. If Gerrard spends time out on the back of what the England management team decide we could see a huge lawsuit and it would be right and proper too.

Sheffield United now officially pathetic

Posted on August 16th, 2007 in Premiership, The FA by Left back

It’s being reported this morning that Sheffield United are to sue West Ham for the cost of their relagation to the Championship.

Pathetic really isn’t the word. This isn’t about justice. It’s not about football. It’s not about anything other than money and while I agree 100% the FA fudged the punishment for the Tevez debacle this does nobody any good.

Sheffield United should be concentrating on getting back to the top flight and not this ridiculous nonsense. They’re a laughing stock. Well, I’m laughing at them anyway. I encourage you to join in.

The FA are twats - part 912

Posted on May 11th, 2007 in The FA, Violence by Left back

Arsenal blog Goodplaya has a good section about the punishments handed out to Michael Ball and Michael Brown by the FA. It’s a subject we’ve covered before on this blog and yet again we see the outlooked of the game’s authorities is totally skewed.

How is it possible to justify three match bans for Kolo Toure and Jon Obi Mikel - and a four match ban for Emmanuel Adebayor - after the Carling Cup final for what was little more than pushing and shoving? No punches thrown. No violent conduct. No injuries or potential for injury to be suffered by any player.

Then you have Brown and Ball. Ball deliberately stamped on Cristiano Ronaldo and did it only with the purpose of hurting him and perhaps putting him out of the game. Brown headbutted Liverpool’s Xabi Alonso - the intent wasn’t as bad as Ball’s but it was still an act soley to cause pain to an opponent.

Yet they get the same three matches as the others. It’s absolute nonsense.

If the FA, and I get tired saying this, want to cut out violent conduct then they need to punish players far more when they behave like thugs. Fair enough, we’ll accept three match bans for ‘ungentlemanly conduct’ and general poor behaviour but we cannot possibly accept bans like that when people who set out to hurt other players are treated the same way.

It’s like sentencing a shoplifter and rapist to the same amount of prison time. Only in the twisted world of the FA does the disciplinary procedure make any kind of sense.

Is Leroy Lita right?

Posted on April 17th, 2007 in The FA, cheats by Left back

Leroy Lita seems vehement that his three match ban for allegedly headbutting a Charlton player, with a name far too long to type out, was completely unjustified.

He’s accused his opponent of being a cheat and a diver and suggested the FA don’t do anything about diving cheats. Can anyone who saw the incident comment?

It’s just that Sky News don’t seem to repeat these kinds of things over and over and over again when it’s not a ‘big’ club involved.

Arsenal and Chelsea fined £100,000

Posted on March 27th, 2007 in Carling Cup, The FA by Left back

In a statement today the FA have fined both Arsenal and Chelsea £100,000 for the Carling Cup handbags. It does seem a little harsh though. Compare it to the following:

Tottenham Hotspur FC
Tottenham Hotspur FC v Middlesbrough FC
FA Premier League, 5 December 2006
Denied breach of FA Rule E20(a) – failing to ensure that its players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion.

Result: Charge proved. Fined £8,000 (£4,000 suspended for 12 months) and warned as to future conduct

Middlesbrough FC
Tottenham Hotspur FC v Middlesbrough FC
FA Premier League, 5 December 2006
Denied breach of FA Rule E20(a) – failing to ensure that its players conducted themselves in an orderly fashion.

Result: Charge proved. Fined £4,000 (£2,000 suspended for 12 months) and warned as to future conduct

Thanks to Vivb for sourcing the info. And I’m sure if you went digging around you’d find far worse incidents punished with much smaller fines. Is this the Sky Sports News justice Arsene Wenger was so upset about?

The FA works backwards

Posted on March 21st, 2007 in The FA by Left back

White Hart Lane, Monday night: Some moron tries to punch Frank Lampard, misses, then gets set upon by stewards and Chelsea staff and players. Both Didier Drogba and Ashley Cole appear to stamp on said moron. The FA says:

We have looked at all the available video footage and there will be no formal disciplinary action against any players.

Old Trafford, Monday night: Cristiano Ronaldo is fouled (no, really!) by James Morrisson. Wayne Rooney, already on a yellow card, grabs Morrisson around the neck then engages in pushing and shoving with various other Boro players.

No second yellow, no video footage examined.

Carling Cup final: Emmanuel Adebayor does not punch or attempt to punch Frank Lampard.

Red card and four game ban.

I’m assuming the next time someone actually swings a punch and connects with somebody’s head they’ll get off scot free.

The FA/Sky

Posted on March 5th, 2007 in Politics, The FA, cheats by The Mac

Arsene Wenger has been raging in the last week about the treatment that Arsenal get from officials - I’m not going to go into that specifically, but…

About three years ago, I did some work at the FA in Soho Square. This meant going round the whole building and visiting each and every office/department. What was most notable was that EVERY office, including those of Sven and David Davies had big tellies showing Sky Sports News all day. The Legal and Compliance Departments were just sat with their feet up, watching the screens all the time I was in there.

For me, this speaks fucking volumes about how the game is run.

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