[Football] Law changes that have actually improved the game

[Arthur]

Following on from the scraping offside thread I was thinking about what law changes have actually improved the game since I've been following the game.

All I could think of was the back pass rule and increasing the number of subs from 1 to 2 (I'm not sure going from 2 to 3 has improved things to be honest and going from 3 to 5 can **** off!). Goal line technology (Villa/Sheff Utd aside) appears to be working very well.

Booking for diving is good but it should be black and white and its not.

The handball law is a hot mess now, offside similar. The professional foul was good when brought in but again they've tinkered with it so much it appears there is no consistency.

In my opinion VAR is the worst thing to ever happen to the game.

I've watched a year of sin binning being trialed non league and its crap.

Should we just stop tinkering with the laws full stop?

 

[Simster]

I agree with a lot of what you say - the back pass rule, the subs, booking for diving and so on.

Where I disagree is on VAR. For me, what it has done is highlight some of the crap laws. If you're going to implement VAR, then simplify the offside rule. The only thing that should count are feet position. That way, it doesn't matter if the striker is pointing where he wants it played, just look at where his feet are when the ball is played - he's then either offside or he's not.

Similarly, clarify the handball rule and quickly. As you say, it is a complete mess.

VAR is not being used well at the moment, but it can be improved. I remember Gary Lineker insisting the back pass rule was going to be a complete disaster, and for the first 2 or 3 months it wasn't great seeing keepers who had never had to control the ball with their feet either panicking and hoofing it into touch or getting caught with the first touch of a blind rapist and giving comedy goals away. But over time, they've had to adapt and have done so and there isn't a sane person alive who wants to go back to the days before the rule existed.

 

[Brok]

Improved the game, you say? This could be a very short thread.

 

[Doonhamer7]

Sin bin for yellow card
Back chat to referee of any type = sin bin
Refs to be mike’d up like the rugby while they discuss the issue - worked perfectly in the rugby for one of the Scotland tries. See above if refs mike’d up player’s comments would be heard by all.
Specialty subsistutions for a free kick - Ward Prowse / Beckham could play for years
No player allowed to put hand over mouth when talking to each other
Padded helmets to remove potential brain damage going forward.
Attacking team allowed to take the penalty from anywhere in box as long as 12 yards from goal

Oh and we as we are so good some sort of points change for poseesion and touches in opponents third by attacking team - there I’ve saved us £50m on a striker

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Goal-line technology? YES!

Every other aspect of VAR? NO!

 

[Swansman]

Back-pass rule, introduction of substitutes, introduction of yellow & red cards, Basile Boli rule... probably quite a few others.

 

[Arthritic Toe]

The back-pass rule was a huge improvement. Remember all the time-wasting by the keeper just rolling it out to a defender to pass it back again? Thank god that's gone. Goal line tech also good.

I've no problem with the offside rule in its current form. Just get rid of VAR and let the ref's and lino's call it. Its VAR that's made it ridiculous - not the rule itself.

 

[schmunk]

Basile Boli rule...

What's this? Do you mean the Bosman rule?

 

[blue-shifted]

The other obvious one is the ability for keepers to play a short goal kick to players inside the area.

It's made a huge difference to how teams play and is responsible for the biggest tactical craze in the game at the moment.

I think this is a good change

 

[Pavilionaire]

Re the backpass rule - I remember watching Notts County (under Howard Wilkinson) beat us 2-0 at the Goldstone and enduring what seemed like the whole of the second half watching the County defenders receiving the ball from the keeper and passing it back to him ad nauseum.

That game was also remarkable for the sight of John Chiedozie getting pelted with bananas. On balance, the eradication of that sort of behaviour is best law change we've seen in the English game.

 

[Arthur]

I agree with a lot of what you say - the back pass rule, the subs, booking for diving and so on.

Where I disagree is on VAR. For me, what it has done is highlight some of the crap laws. If you're going to implement VAR, then simplify the offside rule. The only thing that should count are feet position. That way, it doesn't matter if the striker is pointing where he wants it played, just look at where his feet are when the ball is played - he's then either offside or he's not.

Similarly, clarify the handball rule and quickly. As you say, it is a complete mess.

VAR is not being used well at the moment, but it can be improved. I remember Gary Lineker insisting the back pass rule was going to be a complete disaster, and for the first 2 or 3 months it wasn't great seeing keepers who had never had to control the ball with their feet either panicking and hoofing it into touch or getting caught with the first touch of a blind rapist and giving comedy goals away. But over time, they've had to adapt and have done so and there isn't a sane person alive who wants to go back to the days before the rule existed.

Well we're two seasons in to using VAR and I despise it as much as I did from that very first West Ham game. I 100% agree it can be improved but I can't see how they can ever improve my biggest bug bear with it is that it takes away the spontaneity of scoring a goal. I'd much rather the officials made the odd mistake and be able to go bonkers than where we at currently.

 

[Swansman]

What's this? Do you mean the Bosman rule?

No. The Basile Boli rule (not sure anyone calls it that tbf) was the law change that meant you could no longer tackle players from behind without risking a red card. Marco van Basten had just come back from long-time injury in some game against Marseille when Boli immediatly made a tackle like that, ending Van Bastens career. And as Van Basten was considered one of the best if not the best player at that point, FIFA finally saw the need to protect players from tackles like that. This resulted in a law change just before World Cup 94, where they decided that tackles from behind or with studs showing would result in red cards.

Thinking about it, it was called the "Van Basten law" and not the "Basile Boli rule"... but he certainly played a role in it.

 

[Uter]

The other obvious one is the ability for keepers to play a short goal kick to players inside the area.

It's made a huge difference to how teams play and is responsible for the biggest tactical craze in the game at the moment.

I think this is a good change

Good shout. I agree. This is a vast improvement.

 

[Pint of Ale and a Burger]

The corner kick is one I have often pondered.
Is a corner kick an improvement or would a throw in be better the same as the rest of the pitch?
But I'm guessing the corner kick is an improvement but it's one of them that we have long forgotten why it was brought in.

 

[A1X]

Going a long way back, changing the offside rule from two defenders to one (assuming the goalkeeper is the other) has undoubtedly made the game better (can hardly imagine it being that way now).

Goal line technology is a massive (and IMHO unarguable) improvement in recent times.

 

[Uter]

I wonder what the reaction was at the time to arguable the biggest law change in the last 100 years?

In 1925 the offside law was changed so that a player was offside unless at least 2 opponents were between him and the goal. Previously it was 3.

It had a huge impact. Goals in the football league rose from 4700 (2.54 per game) to 6373 (3.45 per game).

Many, many scoring records were set in the immediate years following this change as defences struggled to adapt, e.g. Dixie Dean's 60 goals in 39 league games in 1927/28.

 

[Easy 10]

Neil Maupay and Aaron Connolly may not agree, but adding a line of tape to act as a crossbar in 1866 was a major improvement to the game (an actual fixed crossbar was introduced 9 years later). Up until then goals could be scored at any height, same as Aussie rules.

As for what WOULD improve the game - I've long been an advocate of the self-pass from free kicks. I can see absolutely no detriment to the game to allow a player to simply take a free kick and run with the ball (or a quick free kick if thats what he wants to do), providing its taken from the right spot. Saves time, stops arguments with the ref, and the fouled team gets a REAL advantage rather than the foulers being allowed time to get all their players back in position.

Also, kick-ins instead of throws. Why not ?

 

[Uter]

Neil Maupay and Aaron Connolly may not agree, but adding a line of tape to act as a crossbar in 1866 was a major improvement to the game (an actual fixed crossbar was introduced 9 years later). Up until then goals could be scored at any height, same as Aussie rules.

As for what WOULD improve the game - I've long been an advocate of the self-pass from free kicks. I can see absolutely no detriment to the game to allow a player to simply take a free kick and run with the ball (or a quick free kick if thats what he wants to do), providing its taken from the right spot. Saves time, stops arguments with the ref, and the fouled team gets a REAL advantage rather than the foulers being allowed time to get all their players back in position.

Also, kick-ins instead of throws. Why not ?

Yeah, the time aspect is something that never really gets discussed. It can easily be a minute or even 2 between the offence and the free kick being taken, but I don't think they add anything on at all unless a player receives treatment. At the very least they should add on time for all the faffing.

As it stands, given that very, very few free kicks actually lead to goals, it's not unthinkable that intentionally conceding free kicks within striking range could actually be a sensible time wasting strategy for teams defending a lead.

 

[MTSeagulls]

I'd like to see, in instances where a free kick has been given, and where the attacking player has had to leave the field of play because of receiving treatment, the offender also has to leave the field of play for the same duration thus taking the numerical advantage away from the defending team.

 

[MTSeagulls]

Independent time keepers too, instead of refs not allowing the correct added time.