How Would You Improve Football?

[simmo]

They tried that a couple of years ago. There was an incident where lee trundle (I think) was in an offside position, the ball was played in his direction, and he followed the ball into the goal, but because he didn't touch it he wasn't flagged offside.

The offside rule will never keep people happy, there have been complaints about ever incarnation of the law (long range shots being ruled out because someone was doing his shoe laces up by the touchline, not knowing what "interferring with play" is, being able to block other players from getting to the ball without touching it etc.).


Perhaps we should add to the list:

Everyone, inside football and out of it, needs to understand and accept that football will never be perfect. Video replays won't eliminate all errors, goal line technology won't eliminate all errors, rework offsides and fouls and whatever rule you like, they will all have some situation that by design or chance makes them look foolish or ineffective.

No I know and I know that a manager like Sam Allardyce would put a striker 1 foot in front of the goalie from free kicks but isn't this is just a sounding off thread for ideas to make football better and I am just throwing the idea out there (it wasn't quite the same as only the receiving player was offside either). Apologies for doing so.

What about my other idea, 0-0 neither side gets a point, this should see the end to turgid 0-0 draws where teams (usually away sides in domestic games or weaker nations in international games for e.g Scotland's 5-5-0 formation, and yes I know they lost!) offer no attacking option and look to park the bus.

 

[Acker79]

No need to apologise, I was just saying that the powers that be had tried your suggestion already.

I like the 0-0 idea.

 

[Tricky Dicky]

They tried that a couple of years ago. There was an incident where lee trundle (I think) was in an offside position, the ball was played in his direction, and he followed the ball into the goal, but because he didn't touch it he wasn't flagged offside.

The offside rule will never keep people happy, there have been complaints about ever incarnation of the law (long range shots being ruled out because someone was doing his shoe laces up by the touchline, not knowing what "interferring with play" is, being able to block other players from getting to the ball without touching it etc.).


Perhaps we should add to the list:

Everyone, inside football and out of it, needs to understand and accept that football will never be perfect. Video replays won't eliminate all errors, goal line technology won't eliminate all errors, rework offsides and fouls and whatever rule you like, they will all have some situation that by design or chance makes them look foolish or ineffective.

Slightly O/T - but I have this little conspiracy theory that the FA/Prem like the ambiguity of the current offside law, as it gives people something to argue about/discuss in the pubs/over the water-cooler - the more people discuss these things, the more interest in the game.

 

[Acker79]

Ban the phrase "he's won a penalty" - and therefore remove the ability to "play for a penalty" - an act which in itself should be penalised!

Cancel any decision to give a penalty if the players celebrate that they've been given one.

 

[Simster]

* Simplify the offside rule. You're either off-side or you're not.
* Only the captain should be able to talk to the ref. Anyone else: yellow card, ten yard penalty.
* Make referees explain their decisions in public.
* Use video technology only for goal line technology and offside decisions. Only to be used when either side appeals a contensious decision, with a maximum of one failed appeal per team.
* Managers like Taggart should be FORCED to do post match interviews. It is disgraceful that he gets away with not talking to the BBC.

 

[strings]

* Simplify the offside rule. You're either off-side or you're not.
* Only the captain should be able to talk to the ref. Anyone else: yellow card, ten yard penalty.
* Make referees explain their decisions in public.
* Use video technology only for goal line technology and offside decisions. Only to be used when either side appeals a contensious decision, with a maximum of one failed appeal per team.
* Managers like Taggart should be FORCED to do post match interviews. It is disgraceful that he gets away with not talking to the BBC.

I agree with the majority of that. Instead of forcing the refs to explain their comments I would probably mike them up in a Rugby Union type way, but I certainly can't argue with your thinking.

 

[Spiros]

Not read right through the thread so apologies for any repeats:
1. Reduce number of allowable substitutes back to one (out of 3 named on bench)
2. Allow refs/FA to give retrospective punishment for diving / feigning injury and make the ban twice as long as for other offences.
3. Get refs to properly enforce the rules about players swearing and not being afraid to send off mouthy gits like Rooney
4. To cut out ridiculously long celebrations after a goal allow the team that has conceded to kick off when they're ready, without having to wait for the opponents to be back on their own half.
5. Return to the original offside rule, whereby a player is offside regardless of whether he is 'interfering' / 'active' or not. Make it simpler for officials, players and fans
6. Return to the old transfer window whereby players can be bought/sold up until about the last month of the season

 

[Brovion]

...

I like the 0-0 idea.

Blimey I don't. How many times have you seen a really gripping, hard-fought goalless draw? At least as many times as you've seen boring ones I'll bet. Don't you think Albion's performance on Tuesday merited a point then?

 

[gruntage]

if a player goes down injured in the box and the other team break. allow a physio to come on for the player whilst play is down the other end (like rugby). if the ball is then cleared back towards the end with the injured player - stop play.

this annoyed me at SCC when we broke only to have the game stopped to tend to a 'head injury'. we lost advantage and SCC regrouped.

you can be sure that far less players would go down (cheating) if they knew play wouldnt be stopped because they are down.

if its an actual injury, then they would be getting the medical help they need whilst play continues.

 

[KneeOn]

WHy don't we do a hockey style offiside law?

In Ice Hockey you are offside if you enter the attacking zone before the puck no matter what.

This will also mean that an ever changing line where a player is offside will be eradicted making offsides easier to judge.

 

[1066familyman]

For kids football in this country, apart from the ongoing 11 aside debate, which i won't get started on here again I'd......

Introduce a 6 goal rule for all matches. When one team reaches a six goal lead, game ended and the kids get to revert to park football where they pick even sides ( organised team goes out the window) and they then play a friendly. This would help kids from good teams that mostly play walk overs all season in which they learn very little of lasting value. It would also help kids from weak teams who get rolled over nearly every game, resulting in them learning very little too. Best of all, there's still something to play for ( how quick can the good team get to six, how long can the weak team hold out/peg them back for ) but the kids come out of their comfort zone by playing in a team with different kids instead of only their team mates week in week out.

Kids when left to play on their own will nearly always change sides in a kickabout that gets too one sided. They see the bigger picture. Sadly, lots of adults don't

 

[FLAIRtastic]

Terracing.

 

[Daffy Duck]

1. Get rid of the 4th official (All they do is hold a silly board up).
2. No off-side outside the 18 yard box.
3. Relegate every Premiership club to Division 2 and make them work to get back to the top division by putting a salary cap on player's wages and a transfer fee limit of £250k on all new signings.
4. Goal-line technology.
5. More terracing in all grounds (I HATE sitting down!).

 

[Acker79]

Blimey I don't. How many times have you seen a really gripping, hard-fought goalless draw? At least as many times as you've seen boring ones I'll bet. Don't you think Albion's performance on Tuesday merited a point then?

I didn't see Tuesday's game, but regardless of that, I wouldn't say at least half of all 0-0 games are gripping hard-fought and dramatic. I'm not sure I'd say arguing 1 in 4 of them are those sorts of dramatic draws would be geerous. I'd say most of them are turgid affairs where either only one team is trying to score and the other is just holding on, or one where neither team has enough about them to fight for the win.

 

[Art Vs Science]

At half time, The managers of each team has to pick out the mouthiest twat from the crowd and play them in a position of their choice. The highest scorer from each team picked to play should be banned from shooting on goal. Give referee's Tazers. Goalkeepers should be no taller than 5ft

 

[seagullsoverlincoln]

sin bins. to penalise a team by reducing it to ten men instead of issuing yellow cards for stuff like dissent/simulation/throwing the ball away/not retreating ten yards would improve the game in my view. Instant
punishment would cut down on the number of incidents as well as reducing players suspension rates and red card incidents

 

[Jimmy Grimble]

I would guess BoF was hoping for more suggestions on off-field matters.

For starters the distribution of wealth would need to be addressed.

 

[BHABen]

The best rule would be to place a 2 yard semi circle around the corner flag, and after 80 mins this is a non foul area, so next time someone takes the ball in the corner to waste time in the 85min, they may think twice when a player is allowed to challenge two footed studs showing knee height, or even a good elbow or dig in the chops

 

[Brovion]

I didn't see Tuesday's game, but regardless of that, I wouldn't say at least half of all 0-0 games are gripping hard-fought and dramatic. I'm not sure I'd say arguing 1 in 4 of them are those sorts of dramatic draws would be geerous. I'd say most of them are turgid affairs where either only one team is trying to score and the other is just holding on, or one where neither team has enough about them to fight for the win.

I think you may be following the wrong sport. There's 46 league games in a season and they're not all going to be classics and a weak or weakend team holding on for a draw away from home by playing a defensive game (and hoping to snatch a goal on the break) is an integeral part of football. I've seen a fair few turgid 1-0's as well where a team scores early and then sits on their lead for the rest of the game and their opponents, as you say, "don't have enough about them to fight for the win".

And the 'turgid' is relative. If you're a home fan expecting to win then yes, you'll be disappointed at a 0-0 draw against a team you were expecting to beat comfortably. If you're an away fan who feared the worst from your lowly cobbled-together injury and suspension-hit team you may well describe it as the best performance of your season. The bottom line is there's more to the game than scoring goals.

 

[Acker79]

The bottom line is there's more to the game than scoring goals.

Not a lot more. The whole aim of games is to win them. To do so, you have to score goals. If you are not trying to win (even if you "are trying to not lose") you aren't competing in the true spirit of the game.

I'm not overly passionate about the idea, but I like it, or at least the sentiment behind it.


As a neutral for most games (as I think most fans are, I will watch the one albion game this weekend and probably 3 or 4 more on TV that I have no team in, a lot of people have this sort of ratio, most don't even go to watch "their team" of a weekend so are entirely watching TV games as a neutral), I have to ask if, when we put forward these ideas, we should be improving football for the biased fans or the neutral fans?