Good.
Now let’s make sure they follow through.
The FA are looking at ways of stamping diving out of football and they’re looking at introducing retrospective bans to do so.
How many times does a player throw himself over to either try or succeed in winning a penalty or a free?
How many times does a player feign injury when there’s contact from an opposing player?
How many times does a player feign injury when there’s no contact from an opposing player?
All of it is cheating – the stingiest form of it. It’s unsportsmanlike. It’s disgusting.
No-one likes it. Every time a player gains an advantage, a team earns points, or another player gets sent off because someone has deliberately dived, there’s mass outrage and then rightly so.
Then, of course, whenever a mascot playacts to poke fun at Crystal Palace’s Wilfried Zaha for his alleged dive – you have to say alleged nowadays – there’s equal outrage because who does Harry the Hornet think he is getting involved?
Irishman Damien Delaney’s quotes on the matter were particularly amusing.
“It’s unnecessary really,” the defender said in anger.
“He is the mascot so I don’t understand why he is getting involved in that,” he identified with conviction.
“Maybe he thinks he is more important than he is. For a mascot to be doing that, it’s uncalled for,” he slammed.
But, according to the London Times, the FA are taking active steps towards bringing retrospective bans in for players caught diving.
‘The governing body is to send officials on a fact-finding mission to Scotland to study the rule there, which stipulates a two-match ban for any player who wins a significant advantage for their team by tricking the referee by diving or simulation, and will explore introducing a similar rule to the English game,’ the report reads.
The Scottish FA use video replays to identify anyone who used simulation and got away with it.
If the perpetrator is considered guilty, they are banned.
Simple as that.
There’s still no argument against issuing a red card for diving. It’s cheating – it’s as clear as that. If you don’t want to be sent off, don’t dive.
If you get away with, you’ll be suspended anyway.
There should be no hiding place for cheats.
