Introduce Technology Into Football

[sunseasand]

I've been saying for years we need to introduce technology into senior football yet the "Auld Fogies" who run the game continue to resist any advancement.

I'd like to take an idea from the Tennis whereby you have video technology and each manager is allowed to question 3 decisions in the course of a match. They could have a flag which they raise and the referee would be obliged to halt the match when the ball is out of play and hand over to the "touch judge" who would study the video and declare the outcome.

There is already video evidence used in Rugby and rather than make the game duller (as has been argued by the football authority luddites), the suspense enhances the excitement and drama.

Look at the World cup. Recently quarter finals and semi finals are mostly drawn over 90 minutes and the winning team is usually decided by a controversial refereeing decision.

The outcome of too many games are decided by poor decisions.

It would also be so easy to put a chip in the centre of a ball that would indicate if the ball crossed the line or not. Surely the "Auld Fogies" could at least sanction this as it would save referees from making embarrassing mistakes.

[BaaBaa.]

I think it should be introduced, the amount of inept decisions this season is ridiculous.

The 4th official could have viewed the incident and informed the Referee much quicker than a Ref can disperse an angry mob of players, for major decisions, it wouldn't slow the game down.

I know for a fact Liverpool would be 2 points better off and IMO Man Utd would have less points, BUT................... nights like last night are priceless.

[Big Boy]

I'll be surprised if you get any votes against.

There is so much money at stake that it should not be left to the (often mis) judgement of the 3 officials. I for 1 would certainly support introduction of technology.

[caller]

I think pretty much everyone is now in favour.

As an aside, there's a conspiracy theory being aired over here that Platini/EUFA were determined to avoid another Manc/Chelsea final at all costs. Naturally, I don't buy into that one at all........

[Randy Cornhole]

I think two of the Rugby rules that would translate over to football well is the 'give the ref lip and I will move the free kick forward 10 yards' one and the 'get out of your pram and you will have to sit on the bench for 10 Min's' one.

I would love to see these implemented as the amount of stick the poor ref gets is beyond belief and totally unfair...

[redzonerocker]

I think two of the Rugby rules that would translate over to football well is the 'give the ref lip and I will move the free kick forward 10 yards' one and the 'get out of your pram and you will have to sit on the bench for 10 Min's' one.

I would love to see these implemented as the amount of stick the poor ref gets is beyond belief and totally unfair...

the first one was implemented but has seen little usage
the second one, sin bins, is a terrific idea

[BaaBaa.]

I would love to see these implemented as the amount of stick the poor ref gets is beyond belief and totally unfair...

Your not kidding.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=93 ... id=3510211

http://uk.reuters.com/article/topNews/i ... me=topNews

It's only the second time in the past few years that Chelsea fans have issued death threats.

[Big Boy]

I think two of the Rugby rules that would translate over to football well is the 'give the ref lip and I will move the free kick forward 10 yards' one and the 'get out of your pram and you will have to sit on the bench for 10 Min's' one.

I would love to see these implemented as the amount of stick the poor ref gets is beyond belief and totally unfair...

What about only the captain being allowed to address the ref? That would see the likes of Rooney taking an early shower on a weekly basis.

[Randy Cornhole]

I have been to twickers on a fair few occasions and on a few of them I have purchased whats called a 'ref-link' This devise allows you complete access to the ref's shell-like and all he has to say.

The one thing that strikes you straight away is the fact that all the players call him sir or boss.
Anyone who back chats him gets a swift rebuttal and scurries away backwards tugging at their forelock...

Anyone who continues to give him lip will get a damned good buttering in the shower afterwards from the linesmen...

[Wanderlust]

I used to be in favour of the sin bin but now I'm not so sure, as it would add another level of confusion as to what offences carry what punishment, and the interpretation of same. Recent examples of existing confusion are whether a tackle from the side but also behind that gets the ball but also the player should be an offence and a yellow/red card. There is already rules in place in football that only the captain should be able to speak to the ref and that dissent is punishable with a yellow card, and I would like to see those rules strictly enforced so we don't get these ugly scenes of players haranguing the ref in attempts to get future decisions their way. It would only take a few weeks of yellows and reds flying around for dissent to stop in its tracks. They should get rid of the yellow card for removing a shirt when celebrating a goal (although why players do this is beyond me!). Agree that the moving the ball forward 10 yards should also be enforced, and added to that it should become a penalty if that takes it into the area.
On the technology side, something to determine that the ball has crossed the line is a given I think - this has been a problem for a long time (1966 WC Final for example!). This could also be extended to throw ins, corners/goal kicks very simply as well. The offside rule needs to be closely examined and then technology introduced to assist in the decisions - it is physically impossible to see when the ball is played whether a player is in an offside position as it requires being able to see two places at the same time; maybe the change needs to be being in an offside position when the player receives the ball? I think the challenges idea, like tennis is a good one, which would restrict how much the game was disrupted, but I think the ref should be able to choose to review video replay himself without challenge as well, and that the managers should be restricted to only 1 or 2 challenges per match, maybe 1 in each half. As an addition to that, if managers are 'sent off' or have to serve a touchline ban, they lose the right to make any challenges. This might make their behaviour more acceptable as well. One difference to tennis I would also add is that the number of challenges allowed disregards whether the challenge is correct or not - in tennis the player doesn't lose a challenge if he is correct but I think in football they should, so that the challenge system does not become disruptive and managers use it carefully. I guess they could accrue one extra challenge for extra time.

[hhfarang]

Even though I am not a fan of the beautiful game, I voted yes because they did it with American football years ago and in my opinion it improves the game and may change the outcome to a fair one after a bad call by a referee.

They now use challenges (of calls) by team coaches, instant replays with many camera angles and reviews by head referees and booth staff (whoever they are). In our game a call cannot be overturned unless there is irrefutable evidence on the replay and (this is very important if you don't want an over zealous coach challenging every call against his team) the number of challenges per game are limited and if the challenge turns out to be overthrown one of that team's allotted timeouts is taken away as a penalty for slowing the game.

I like the game better for it now...

[sunseasand]

One difference to tennis I would also add is that the number of challenges allowed disregards whether the challenge is correct or not - in tennis the player doesn't lose a challenge if he is correct but I think in football they should, so that the challenge system does not become disruptive and managers use it carefully. I guess they could accrue one extra challenge for extra time.

Disagree with this part (although agree with the rest of your post). If a challenge requires the ref to overturn a decision the number of challenges allowed shouldn't be lost. Its up to the ref to try to ensure there are no successful challenges. If the game is littered with successful challenges drop the ref from grade 1 games.

Since the fans seem to want it, most commentators and journalists too, certainly most players and managers, do you think it might be introduced soon? The World Cup in 2010 would be an ideal opportunity?

[Wanderlust]

The problem being that if there are too many challenges that it both disrupts the flow of the game and thus the entertainment, and it means the referee loses control of the game. There would have to be strict guidelines for a challenge policy, and it should only be allowed for certain events, otherwise referees and assistants will not be able to get on with their jobs. I understand your point but every referee has official observers watching them (in the PL anyway) so that should be enough to determine their ability to referee at the top levels.
The bigger problem with referees is consistency within a game, and you see all the time one tackle get a yellow card and another identical challenge not, and this infuriates both fans and players. Another example from the recent Stoke v West Ham game was that every time Delap took a throw he was taking a long time and requesting a towel from the ball boys to dry the ball; Lucas Neill did this once as a piss take in the second half and got a yellow card. After that Delap was told not to request the towel any more, so Neill got his point across, but he should never have got the card. These sorts of incidents should not be open to challenge but are still a problem that need dealing with. I think the after match reviewing situation should be changed and made more public and open as well, so that sendings off due to two yellows can be rescinded the same as straight reds can be. Hopefully phantom goals can be eliminated completely, as well as those not awarded when they should be by adopting technology.

[sunseasand]

TAnother example from the recent Stoke v West Ham game was that every time Delap took a throw he was taking a long time and requesting a towel from the ball boys to dry the ball; Lucas Neill did this once as a piss take in the second half and got a yellow card. After that Delap was told not to request the towel any more, so Neill got his point across, but he should never have got the card.

This could be solved by introducing an official timekeeper with a stop watch. When the ball is out of play the watch is stopped and only when the ball is back in play (after a throw-in, free kick, corner, goal kick etc.) should the clock be started again.

A normal game of football on average has about 1 hours worth of play, so make the game 30 minutes each way - OF REAL PLAY TIME. End of time wasting in an instant!

[Wanderlust]

I agree that a separate timekeeper would be a good idea, although my example wasn't really addressing time wasting (which Delap actually wasn't doing deliberately as Stoke were behind) but consistency; the ref had been allowing Delap to request the towel all game with no action, but once Neill did he was booked for time wasting, which he may have been doing but I think if the ref had been consistent he would have booked Delap earlier in the match; Neill was just taking the Mickey but making a point at the same time - he can do it so why can't I?