Redrum
07-11-2010, 07:46 PM
Sadly, the most important lesson was that everyone should fall if touched. Holland could have easily had a PK in the second half if the Dutch striker knew how to act. The Holland player\'s ability to stay up despite the grab and 360 leg swipe attempt was noble, but clearly not the way to win. There was more than enough to take a dive and get a PK.
Which is also why this WC has been, in a way, a panoply of disgrace.
We saw it again in every game of the Cup. Ever notice how they writhe and roll at the end of the dive as if dismembered...only to be up and running when they don\'t get the call? Often they bury their faces in the turf, maybe to hide their smirking grins, maybe to hide their involuntary blushing. Wait...I take that back. By the time these guys play top level professional soccer, they are incapable of blushing. They have mastered the art of the dive, something that in other sports can get you penalized, thrown out or even prosecuted.
I thought the final was OK. The Dutch played physical soccer which garnered them yellow cards galore. It worked for a decent time but Spain stillseemed to play most of the game in the 3/4 of the pitch closest to the Dutch goal. The final result seemed fair. The problem is just what I quoted, in which Farm 93 has fairly represented the common wisdom. Those knowledgable about soccer think it would be better to dive. Robben was not taken down or impaired enough to warrant a free kick without the dive. He finished the play, just not successfully. So the unwritten rules of pro soccer say he is a chump. Acting is considered better than playing. What a weird, sissyfied, legalistic aspect to an otherwise tough sport.