By Jesse Fink
June 26th 2009 @ 3:55am
Related coverage
Who’s derailing the Socceroos express?
Australia's Scott McDonald and Iraq's Haidar Hussain during the Australian Socceroos v Iraq World Cup qualifier. AAP Image/Dave Hunt
You’ve got to hand it Tim Cahill. He might have acted like a plonker in his infamous interview with Melanie McLaughlin, but he’s kept football in the news for the past fortnight. Better than in the news, actually on the front pages.
In fact, the regularity with which the Everton and Australia midfielder makes news has probably made “Cahillgate” redundant as a cover-all.
With any given day you’re not sure what news Cahill is making: allegedly getting into dust-ups with bouncers, having a blue with News Limited, spruiking his kids cancer charity, being the guest of honour at the Johnny Warren Football Foundation dinner and turning up late, having his name linked with Manchester United.
Now he’s making news all over again by confirming to SBS’s The World Game that all is not well inside the Socceroos camp.
This topic has been the talk of football circles for some time now but got forgotten amid our country’s qualification for the 2010 World Cup. For good reasons various journos were too afraid to touch it.
However it was too radioactive to die altogether.
“It doesn’t take rocket scientists to work out what’s happened in the past couple of weeks,” he told Les Murray in an interview to be aired this Sunday, apropos of his own troubles with the press.
“There are players’ agents involved who are very bitter. It’s difficult to explain because you think that you can play football and nothing else matters but factors outside the game do affect the team.
“It’s one of those issues that will definitely be addressed with the FFA and players because it’s something that has made me angry. As a team, when we play we are unbelievable but outside, when it comes to other issues, it’s a little sad.”
Sad and clearly divisive, as evidenced by an email sent by “a big-name player” (or on behalf of that player, if rumours are to be believed) to News Limited last weekend when the fallout from the nightclub affair was still pitting news organisation against football federation with no signs of a ceasefire.
“You don’t go around abusing people and acting like a big-time Charlie,” part of the email read that was published in the Sunday Telegraph and the Herald Sun. “Ever since the World Cup it has just gotten worse and worse. Some of the boys have let the whole superstar thing go to their heads and they act like they are untouchable.
“What gets me is the guys that are doing this sort of thing the most are the ones running around the place and telling everyone how they do this and that for the kids and how they want to be role models.
“It’s a bloody disgrace and I’m glad that people are finally taking it a bit more seriously. If we don’t pull our heads out of the sand and be honest with ourselves, the World Cup will be a disaster.”
Whooah.
Ray Gatt, The Australian’s longtime “soccer” writer, wrote the next day that the email was a “punch that has the power to suck the breath out of the Socceroos and cause a rift in the camp with less than 12 months to the kick off of the World Cup finals in South Africa”.
He’s not too far wrong.
Something has to be done about it but Pim Verbeek, the Australia coach, is currently out of the country. The FFA likely won’t touch it. They’re acting and have been for some time like there’s no issue at all.
Nor can a rapprochement be expected to be brokered from within the playing group, given that elements in and around that group are allegedly the source of all the trouble in the first place.
It’s messy. Decidedly messy. And not good at all for a team going to the World Cup and needing every advantage it can get.
But one thing is clear. Cahill, for all that is said about him, good or bad, has done his country a big favour by publicly acknowledging there is a problem. That’s the first step in resolving it.
It’s now up to the rest of his team-mates to put their differences aside and find some real unity rather than just presenting a united front.
If they can’t do that, then God help us in South Africa.
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GeneralAshnak said | June 26th 2009 @ 7:35am | Report comment
This feels like a beat up still Jesse. Being unable to name sources leads to classic examples of investigative journalism like the ‘utegate’ affair, and we all have seen how much truth there was to that. I think the best advice is to not jump the gun, if that email was sent by an agent – is it the current agent of a current Socceroos? Or is it a former agent? Or former Socceroos? Or is it a huge big steaming pile of bulldust? Cahill’s comments do not say to me that there is a rift or trouble brewing amongst the Socceroos, but it does tell me that there may be trouble brewing amongst their entourages.
Realfootball said | June 26th 2009 @ 8:15am | Report comment
I think there have to be grave doubts over the authenticity of that email. There is an agenda at the Daily Telegraphy to discredit football, and its no coincidence it coincides with the launch of our world cup bid. The alleged email says the player writing has been with the national team 10 years. The only player, I believe, who has been there that long, apart from Mark S, who is named in the email, is Harry Kewell. Is it credible that Harry would right or sign off on an email like this? Very, very hard to believe. I remain deeply suspicious of this as just another beatup by a New Ltd paper, known for their hostility to the code. The upside is that it shows that footballl is being taken very seriously now.
sheek said | June 26th 2009 @ 8:34am | Report comment
I think someone else said it last week. When the media starts putting out these kind of stories, whether they’re true or not, you know you’ve hit the big time.
For every 10 people building you up, there’s maybe three trying to tear you down. Criticism, often invented, comes with success. Indeed, criticism is a by-product of success.
And of course, if there’s any truth in these stories, it reminds me of another saying about people pulling together to reach a goal, then tearing apart once they get there.
For the time being, I’m going to treat some of these stories with the skeptical cynicism they deserve.
whiskeymac said | June 26th 2009 @ 8:44am | Report comment
Jesse, Davvide Corran wrote a similar piece on The Roar a week or so ago and the general consensus was that these divisions in the roos were insignificant at best and not being displayed on the field. . Since Davvide’s piece the email “broke” and there have been SBS reports and chats. More smoke without fire? or is it just everyone wanting a piece of Cahill now he is one fo the countries most known stars in any sport/ field ata time when rugby league has had a rough time and it’s someone elses go?
I do not believe that the Roos will have a Dutch like implosion, but with all this smoke being generated by the media and commentators something will have to be done because maybe, just maybe, if enough people believe there is trouble then we will have the story come true. and that would be a shame.
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 8:47am | Report comment
Sheek,
Spot on. I’ve heard a lot of people complaining that the media are out to get soccer with the outrage that was generated by Cahill’s post match interview, but the reality is that this is the kind of attention that any football code gets in this country once it’s hit the limelight. Just look at how the Daily Terror spent weeks claiming the NRL was “in crisis” and losing popularity because of sex scandals (despite the ratings not being affected and crowd numbers remaining stable). 10 years ago Cahill’s petulance wouldn’t have got much attention, but now they’ve hit the big time it’s news when a soccer player carries on like a 5 year old.
Midfielder said | June 26th 2009 @ 8:55am | Report comment
Interesting times ahead… with Obie Wan, BB & Archie in charge in the back room… I think (hope & pray) that along with Pim there is the necessary skills to resolve this problem..
If it is a bad as you are suggesting Jes… then a head or to may have to go…the reports coming out of the Asian Cup of 2007 strongly indicated that Graham Arnold had caused rift in the team which maybe is still there. Maybe he needs to a sacrificial lamb to smooth out the issues…
Brett McKay said | June 26th 2009 @ 9:00am | Report comment
Sheek, Dan, I said something similar last week, or the week before even, that the fact the Terrorgraph is now using it’s rugby league writers to cover soccer/football, and Rothfield devoting plenty of his column space (usually reserved to RL half-truths) to football half-truths, surely has to count as a win in the end for football.
If any publicity is good publicity, then the FFA is cashing in…
Pippinu said | June 26th 2009 @ 9:02am | Report comment
What is the issue exactly? I haven’t read anything anywhere (inlcuding here) that actually describes a problem as I would normally understand it.
Some no names get a bit miffed at the big names strutting their stuff?
Is that it?
It’s as recent as 2001 that Harry Kewell was flying in first class while the rest of the team sat in Economy.
We’re all equal – but some are more equal than others.
Ben of Phnom Penh said | June 26th 2009 @ 9:24am | Report comment
There will always be someone upset in the dressing room that they didn’t get the game time, not given a leave pass when someone else is, thinks the showers are too cold etc etc etc. Whether this type of discontent, normal human background noise, constitutes discontent that will translate onto the field is doubtful.
What is interesting, a point picked up by a few here, is that fact that this type of issue is being reported upon at all. In the recent past no-one cared even though the issues were greater (particularly trying to get the team together to play Oceania nations). The same goes for all of the reporting on the Socceroos’ style. It is amazing that anyone cares beyond the SBS crew, let alone have an opinion on how the Socceroos should play. Now it is a constant topic of discussion in the most pedestrian of our papers.
Football has come a long way in the public consciousness.
Robbos said | June 26th 2009 @ 9:55am | Report comment
Dan,
the difference being RL has some history with sex related issues, while the Cahillgate was as big a story as the Fitler drunkeness, it was a non event.
60 odd people were evicted from the SOO the other night, if that happened at a football match, it would be frontpage headlines about ’soccer fans violence’. There is an inequality in the reporting.
Robbos said | June 26th 2009 @ 9:58am | Report comment
Jesse,
You have beat around the bush, are you aware of issues within the socceroos camp? Or is it just big egos at work, especially amonst the player agents trying to secure sponsorship?
You are a lot closer to the action than most of us punters, either tell us what you know or don’t feulled the fire if you are unable to.
Janex said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:03am | Report comment
This could be a bit of the “old” football lingering around the successful Socceroo group. The new football cliche’ has certainly been adminstered successfully wherever FFA fingers can directly reach. However what of the “old” football agents, how or are they on board? With the success, and profile of the national team and key players, the marketabllty increases and therefore money on endorsements and engagments obviously increase. Certainly agents ego’s could be bruised, let alone their back pockets if thier ‘man isn’t getting, in their opinion, his just deserts. Tim has acknowlegded that there is some “smoke’, I just hope it’s not an ‘old’ arsonist that is at hand, otherwise WC 2010 could go up in smoke!
Albert Ross said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:09am | Report comment
The Daily Tell-a-lie has some recent form creating emails that didn’t actually ever exist.
Millster said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:10am | Report comment
I do agree with Ben and others on the simple fact that we are now being reported on, good and bad.
And to some extent I think we football fans need to suck on a bottle of harden-up.
I very rarely watch the (NRL) footy show but last night while channel surfing by chance I stopped on the segment where Vautin was encouraging Gould to stand for NSW Origin coach again, which prompted Gould’s comments about how broken NSWRL is and what was wrong with the code, with one headline issue for him being media relations. Very interesting segment.
Now here we are in football land all bemoaning the massive attention gained by League by the media and hoping for more (…but… perhaps naively, thinking that this attention will, or should, be all positive). At the same time one of the leading figures in League, a prime subject of our media jealousy, is wishing for radical reform in his own codes media relations and naming that aspect as one of the most broken parts of his game.
I’m writing by way of observation, without a specific conclusion in mind. But my general feeling is that we have to be careful in what we wish for. As football becomes bigger and bigger we will get more media attention and it will not be good – after all scandal sells better than fairy-floss stories. There will be agendas, divisions, things exposed, fabrications, all sorts of things apart from core reporting. We as a code have to grow up awful fast and develop a frot foot strategy to deal with this – and to me ‘deal’ means a combination of accepting the good and bad of the media profile, and managing it as best we collectively can. Its an absolutely vital element in the continuation of our game’s development.
GeneralAshnak said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:22am | Report comment
I have decided why these non news items are getting such an airing. Now that the EPL is in break, the HAL hasn’t started and the Socceroos don’t have any matches you need to do something to keep the page counts ticking over. I can’t wait til we have some more actual news to talk about, because this stuff is just boring.
Realfootball said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:23am | Report comment
It was of course the Daily Tele clowns who made idiots of themselves over the alleged “Pauline Hanson” nude shots. Its a tabloid rag with the ethics of a hyena and the collective IQ of a garden slug.
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:40am | Report comment
Robbos,
“the difference being RL has some history with sex related issues, while the Cahillgate was as big a story as the Fitler drunkeness, it was a non event.”
“Cahillgate”… Please stop if you want to live past today. Honestly, it’s bad enough with the likes of channel 10 now referring to Godwin Grech as the “utegate deepthroat”. I know you may have been quoting, but still, the ludicrous overuse of the suffix “gate” by people involving any minor controversy is stupidity of the highest order.
Back on topic, I would argue that Cahill’s comments were different, rather than less bad or worse than another “drunken Freddie” story, given the Australian context. Freddie was an idiot, but he came out and said he was, while Cahill acted as if he was an untouchable and arrogantly decided he was going to “punish the media”. In a country known for tall poppy syndrome, that’s bound to piss a few people off and with Soccer’s new noteriety it stands to reason that it’ll sell a few papers now too.
“60 odd people were evicted from the SOO the other night, if that happened at a football match, it would be frontpage headlines about ’soccer fans violence’. There is an inequality in the reporting.”
To be fair, that’s a rep that soccer has brought on itself… much like league with sex scandals, soccer has such a strong history of crowd violence that it’s just one of those things that immediately generates media interest and so it is more likely to be jumped upon if it happens in that sport (also, 60 people being evicted is nothing compared the numerous DEATHS that have occured in European soccer matches over the years – that’s why there’s a microscope on fan behaviour in the game) .
Millster said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:41am | Report comment
Realfootball – such newspapers exist in every country in the world and serve a particular demographic. No point getting angry with them, they are part of the mix will remain so as long as there is a demand for what they do. We just have to get proactive and intelligent as a code.
keeper11 said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:42am | Report comment
‘ Its a tabloid rag with the ethics of a hyena and the collective IQ of a garden slug.’
..and the so-called voice of ‘global city’ sydney…..very sad…
more like redneck footy central if one judges by its local media’s attitudes..
the crux of the matter is ..
the socceroos after a rock solid , hugely succesful if unspectacular qualafying campaign earned a historic second succesive WC apperance.
-the same week all federal government on both sides fully supported the massive initiative to possibly host the worlds biggest sporting event…
overall ..a pretty big and positive week for the code one would think ??
worthy of an uplifting piece back page of not front page??
( aka 3/4 front page league propganda piece post origin on ‘mighty maroons’
but..oh no..not to the shameless agenda driven news-limited posse from the melbourne storm media arm
aka ‘the strayan’ to putrid sewer inhabited by ‘the rag’ ‘..all self-proclaimed ‘masters of their own universe’..
who ofcourse have decided all this positive news on the sockah is ‘not in their interest’;..
have rolled out one beat up, half-truths, negative spin , rumour, inuendo…ANYTHING to deflect from the positive vibe and tasrnish the team and the code at one of its finest hours…
the stench of fear from this sc*m……
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:53am | Report comment
Keeper11,
Firstly, the Telegraph is the only place you will hear their paper referred to as “the voice of sydney” – anyone with half a brain in this city doesn’t really even consider it a news paper, but rather a second rate kitty litter.
Anyway, that aside, I feel that perhaps you’re either very young or simply don’t understand how media (particularly conservative media) works. Good news almost always loses to bad news and scandal. It’s just the way it works unfortunately and it’s what has made the likes of Murdoch the rich man he is today; he’s preddled on the lowest common denominator from day 1 and he’s succeeded. His “3 S” (Sex, Scandal and Sport and in India it’s the 4 Cs – Corruption, Crime, Celebrities and Cricket) media model has permiated the whole globe. Positive stories just don’t sell that well most of the time, so it’s not so much that there’s an agenda against soccer, than simply soccer is now being given attention and thus any scandal in the game is now worthy of print.
Robbos said | June 26th 2009 @ 11:17am | Report comment
Dan,
Sorry about the ‘gate’ bit.
Let’s put into perspective, Freddy was caught in the act by the police, half naked banging on a door of a female. fined himself, called himself a goose, not much other scope.
I was not there when incident happened, so I don’t know what happened, but we have 2 sides of the story, one of a bouncer & the other of Cahill’s, both Police & FFA investigated both deemed no or very minor incident. So unlike Freddy who was caught with the hand in the jar, there is no proof of anything that Cahill had alledged to do.
In regards to football voilence, this was very much the case in the 70s & 80s, but you would have found, the football fans voilence has really cleaned up their act, unlike maybe some other issues in other sports.
whiskeymac said | June 26th 2009 @ 11:17am | Report comment
millster – yup! anyone read “The Sun”? Actually read is a loose term but it does have good coverage of football, gossip, big sales and all with absolutely no journalistic integrity, with the exception of page 3 which keeps a breast of the times. Murdoch paper. but a powerful paper – can win elections for parties etc. and help ruin careers (every England manager in fact). The Daily Telegraph isnt quite as bad as that tabloid, or for example News of the World, but in Aussie terms it’s the closest thing.
I still think the paper was out of line in its beat ups but as a thought haven’t Cahill (bro in jail) and Kewell (injuries and overpaid) and Neill (leg breaker- money grabber) etc all had run ins before in the UK with such press, maybe even worse press? Surely they’d be thicker skinned or at least used to it?
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 11:30am | Report comment
Robbos,
It has definitely gotten better over the years, I was merely pointing out that that’s a legacy that’ll be hard to erase given that in reality it’s still only been about 10 years (there were a number of incidents throughout the 90s as well).
On Cahill, I think the point was how he reacted rather than whether or not his side of the story was right or not… He really should have just copped it on the chin and gotten on with it, there was no need to insult the reporter in the post match interview (a reporter who had nothing to do with the entire affair). Soccer fans needn’t support this behaviour either… it’s not disloyal to call him an over-paid “prima donna” for carrying on like that. I’m a rugby union fan more than anything, and if Matt Giteau had come out and done something like that, there’s no way in hell I’d be backing him up.
AndrewM said | June 26th 2009 @ 11:34am | Report comment
Milster,
I think they are very different issues…
Gould can be likend to Foster.. Both love their sport and will critise the game in the hope of making it better, not worse!
The big difference is if someone is critising a sport to push an agenda to negatively influence people.
I can’t see how the daily telegraphs journalists (the non football based ones) are being critical in the hope of creating a positive outcome.. and that is where I draw the line. That is propaganda.
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 11:39am | Report comment
AndrewM,
What are the ones at ‘The Sun’ doing in England? They clearly don’t hate the game, yet spurn out any damaging rumours and inuendo they can get their hands on. Do you think that, perhaps, this is just how these papers work, and have done since the days of Hearst? Agenda or otherwise, they have always fed off negativity and scandal.
AndrewM said | June 26th 2009 @ 11:56am | Report comment
Dan.. there is still a big difference.. For every headline/front page of negative spin there is probably x3 or 4 positive spins on the front page..
Just take a look at how much coverege RL gets in the DT.. It is amazing.. I reckon almost EVERY day there is a front page push weather its a story, or pushing calendars, cards, liftouts etc..
That is a big point you guys miss.
If Tim Cahill was a RL player sure he woulda made front page (PERHAPS) for the night club (non incident) but he would have been front page at least 3 or 4 more times in a positive way, clearing his name etc..
That is why this is so grossly unfair.
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 12:06pm | Report comment
AndrewM,
I personally don’t really read the Tele, and haven’t for a while, so it’s hard for me to know if they really go about trying to clear the names of players after vilifying them in RL, but I guess it wouldn’t be surprising. What I find hard to understand though, is why the Telegraph would honestly have an agenda against soccer, when you’d think it’s business interests should dictate it supports the A-League and the Super 14 (given that Fox more or less owns both of them – much more so than the NRL). In reality it should be pumping them all up…
AndrewM said | June 26th 2009 @ 12:13pm | Report comment
I think you can liken it to an old boys club.. The DT has been a RL domain for years. So naturally most of the journalists which are hired are avid RL fans.
So by having this massive RL culture it is very easy to gang up on other sports knowing that you are the number 1 paper in the country, it is quite a powerful form of propaganda, no?
This might not be foxtel’s views or news limiteds, but it is definately something from within the DT itself.
TammyS said | June 26th 2009 @ 12:39pm | Report comment
Is it just me or does every single sport in the world think that the DT is out to get them? AFL, NRL,Soccer, all think they’re hard done by by them.
At the end of the day, they are a paper that have no real ethics and just print stories TO SELL NEWSPAPERS OR GET PEOPLE TALKING. If that means exaggerating certain off-field scandals by footballers then that is what they will do.
Viscount Crouchback said | June 26th 2009 @ 12:43pm | Report comment
Come on, chaps, there is obviously truth in this story.
Lucas Neill, for instance, is infamous in London for his narcissism. And Cahill has become very weird since he started getting hyped up.
You’ve got to remember that most of these EPL footballers live on a completely different planet. In the England squad, most of them will rub along okay because they’re all bonkers and no one knows any better. But I can well imagine that for some of the more normal, less famous players in the Socceroos squad, guys like Neill and Cahill must seem like the most arrogant men alive.
(And yes – the “I’m so desperate to give back to society” schtick is always a sure sign of a rampant ego).
Realfootball said | June 26th 2009 @ 1:01pm | Report comment
Millster, I’m not angry with the daily tele – being a media professional myself, I understand they are playing to their audience. My somewhat hyperbolic reference to them in terms of wildlife was just an observation of the content of the paper. Sadly, the Daily Teles of the world remind us that civilisation is a thin veneer over intransigent ignorance and prejudice.
Brian Munich said | June 26th 2009 @ 1:11pm | Report comment
So the national team has a few large egos that clash occasionally? It doesn’t surprise me an iota. In any sporting team there’s always going to be personality clashes (remember Kewell v Viduka?) and the chances of that are amplified when you have players from the unreal world of EPL.
At this stage it’s simply an overreaction to suggest that this is compromising our chances in South Africa, which remember is a number of dressing room clashes away yet! There’s simply no evidence that there has been, or is likely to be, any impact on playing performance.
The Dutch national team of course has a long tradition of imploding along these lines just prior to (or during) major tournaments. But even with our Oranje links, I think this concern is illusory at present.
keeper11 said | June 26th 2009 @ 1:18pm | Report comment
‘Dan.. there is still a big difference.. For every headline/front page of negative spin there is probably x3 or 4 positive spins on the front page..
Just take a look at how much coverege RL gets in the DT.. It is amazing.. I reckon almost EVERY day there is a front page push weather its a story, or pushing calendars, cards, liftouts etc..
That is a big point you guys miss. ‘
Today Friday..and surprise…league makes it on the front page of the DT ..again..
Someone correct me…but is that now 2 weeks STRAIGHT !! that league has been front page in some feelgood / promo/ ‘footy card ad ‘ headline ??
have nothing against league..don’t mind it either way..
just highlighting the patheitic farce that is sydneys so-called major daily….home to a variety of fooball codes..
and not -surprising that football and general sports followers see it with utter contempt and sub-zero credibility….
Millster said | June 26th 2009 @ 1:18pm | Report comment
Realfootball – in total agreement with you, and I’m sure you’ll agree back when I respond (as a foreign affairs / international business professional) that at least we’re discussing about the prejudice and ignorance of such papers in relation to the relatively meaningless subject of sports.
Much as I love football I’ll take a million attacks on it from such papers if those attacks are diverted from the crap they write about the really important things in the world.
Keeper11 – as others have said the Tele is not the voice of Sydney. In fact one of the great things about this city is its resistance to the very notion of having one voice (or one culture, or one football code, etc)
Viscount – I must admit your thought also crossed my mind. Much as we love football we also have to be realistic and expect that a share of our Socceroos will be prats. The environment, money, hype around any professional sporting person is never conducive to positive, humble behaviour. We can’t let our pro-football stance make us mindless apologists for our favoured players; sometimes we simply can’t avoid that a few of them will act like turkeys.
Millster said | June 26th 2009 @ 1:22pm | Report comment
Again to Keeper 11 – to anyone east of about Strathfield, or who in general has an IQ over over 50 or so, the Tele is not the major daily.
Most of my colleagues and friends would read the SMH and either or both of the Australian and the Fin Review as daily fodder. That is certainly my own starting point.
Our exposure to Tele stories is more likely to be when they are mixed into the News.Com website news that we might glance at throughout the day.
I’m sure its the same in Melbourne with anyone with even a quarter of a brain preferencing the Age (and maybe one of the national papers) over the Herald.
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 1:28pm | Report comment
Keeper11,
“just highlighting the patheitic farce that is sydneys so-called major daily….home to a variety of fooball codes..
and not -surprising that football and general sports followers see it with utter contempt and sub-zero credibility….”
Actually, I think you’ll find that the sports section of the Tele is probably the most balanced part of the paper. The lack of credibility comes from employing tactics that would make conservative papers in the McCarthy era blush.
I still remember their headline when David Hicks was captured: “meet David Hicks, the young boy who would grow up to be A TRAITOR” (above a photo of Hicks as a child). Their incredible contempt for journalism is clearly present in it’s sport section, but it is by no means even close to being the worst part of it.
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 1:31pm | Report comment
To clarify the above, I was by no means claiming that the Tele’s sport was actually balanced, but rather that the “news” sections are so unbelievably unbalanced that the sports section almost looks decent by comparison.
Robbos said | June 26th 2009 @ 1:32pm | Report comment
Touche!!!!!
Luke W said | June 26th 2009 @ 4:23pm | Report comment
Dan-
“On Cahill, I think the point was how he reacted rather than whether or not his side of the story was right or not… He really should have just copped it on the chin and gotten on with it, there was no need to insult the reporter in the post match interview (a reporter who had nothing to do with the entire affair).”
For anyone who knows Tim Cahill and the way he normally acts with the media and the public, straight away it was obvious this was a beat up. I have met Tim Cahill, and there is not a more down to earth, caring individual in Australian sport. I am sure that if the Daily Telegraph’s version of events were true, Tim would be the first to put his hand up and say he had done wrong. No doubt in my mind. But the way Tim responded, as an individual who gives his all to the Socceroos and their fans, showed a man who was made to look completely humiliated by a newspaper that has always had questionable agendas and he took matters into his own hands. I for one applaud Cahill. If he did nothing wrong, which he, the establishment, the police and the FFA all believe, he has no right to apologise, or interact with the media who beat up a nothing story to sell some more papers.
As for the interview with Mel McLaughlin, I hope Tim has contacted her to apologise. While she was representing the media who beat up the story, many people watching at home wouldn’t have realised this, and thought it was a personal attack. I know it wasn’t but Tim should apologise to her for the people that might have.
Dan said | June 26th 2009 @ 4:37pm | Report comment
Luke,
I’m sure Tim’s a nice bloke and all in person, but surely being an English Premier League star he’d have been the subject of false allegations before… I guess personally, I’d have expected someone like him to be thicker skinned and think that his reaction achieved the opposite of what he’d have intended. The Telegraph is like a drunk looking for a fight, it’s sometimes just best not to react to them…
Viscount Crouchback said | June 26th 2009 @ 5:03pm | Report comment
Dan,
Good post. I think the EPL Socceroos expect to be worshipped when they arrive back in Australia. The big man returns – that kind of thing. It’s a common theme with EPL stars when they return to their home country to play alongside their less heralded international team-mates – e.g. Benni McCarthy and SA, Berbatov and Bulgaria, Roy Keane and Ireland, etc
I get the impression that many of them expect a medal for deigning to turn out for their nations.
onside said | June 26th 2009 @ 5:13pm | Report comment
Jesse,The Roar has hit the jackpot with you mate.Pure tabloid.
1.’Who ’s derailling the Soccerros express’ ,has 42 posts and it is still in pole position
2.’Whats really holding soccer back’ , managed a staggering 304 posts
3.’FFA should sanction Cahill for belittling McLaughlin’ ,racked up very commendable 184 posts
Here is an idea for the next one,
4. ‘When did Cahill stop beating his wife’.
Cant critisise a writer who has so far racked up over 530 posts via three articles.Ka’ching.Ka’ching.
The fans love it. But this formula is not for me.
Ben of Phnom Penh said | June 26th 2009 @ 6:14pm | Report comment
I’m not sure on that one, Onside. It seems that there a few posters with slightly disconcerting “Fink” fetishes that always comment on the author as opposed to the topic on hand.
Dave said | June 26th 2009 @ 6:38pm | Report comment
GeneralAshnak Being unable to name sources leads to classic examples of investigative journalism like the ‘Watergate’ affair, and we all have seen how much truth there was to that. thanks to the anonymous source deep throat.
Luke W said | June 26th 2009 @ 9:40pm | Report comment
Dan,
That is a good point. I have not been witness to the English media, but I understand they can be very harsh. Although I have to ask the question of would Tim Cahill actually be a news story in England? Over here is a household name, but in the EPL he plays for a mid-tier team (not even one with a glamorous or controversial culture or history) and I can’t imagine him being subject to personal attacks. However I agree completely with your comment about not responding would have been the best course of action.
P.S. Great analogy of the fighting drunk, by the way.
onside said | June 26th 2009 @ 10:54pm | Report comment
Ben O’PP
My comments neither attack the author ,nor shoot the messenger ,but rather address the style.
It is not a contradiction of terms to say,’on the one hand I acknowledge a contrived format that
people obviously like as it is very successful ,but on the other hand , I cannot take it seriously.
Ben of Phnom Penh said | June 27th 2009 @ 3:30am | Report comment
No problems, Onside. I’m just more interested in the merits of the article’s content, which I disagreed with, than the style (there being a difference). You probably just need to articulate your point of view as you make no specific reference to the content. I apologise for being pedantic however I enjoy the Roar for those moments of insight that posters offer rather than broad comments that reflect points of view that only the poster has insights to. I’d rather learn why posters have a view point than learn that they have them, after all there are interesting people engaging here.
Robbos said | June 27th 2009 @ 8:25am | Report comment
Berbatov was recently criticise by the head of the Buglarian football for not putting in during a recent NT appearance, not something you could ever say about our Timmy.
StiflersMom said | June 27th 2009 @ 8:34am | Report comment
When Guss was in charge the one thing that was obvious is he instilled discipline, nothing was more clear it was his was or the highway. Is it too late for Pim to change tactic and become that rock for the team?
Joe FC said | June 27th 2009 @ 2:35pm | Report comment
Jesse
There’s no such thing as the perfect marriage, family or club. Despite their differences spouses, families and teams endure & so will the Socceroos.
Dave said | June 27th 2009 @ 3:48pm | Report comment
Realfootball
You blame this on a conspiracy theory “…an agenda at the Daily Telegraphy to discredit football…”
How do you explain the SBS reporting then?
jimbo said | June 28th 2009 @ 11:38pm | Report comment
Tim Cahill’s behaviour has been terrific through all this and I can’t imagine many footballers of his age coming through what he has been through in the past few weeks looking much better.
This is a real positive for football from many angles. The attention has been great and people like Alan Jones and the CEO of Sanitarium (who make Weet Bix) have stood alongside him and backed him 100%.
It certainly hasn’t diminished the reputation of Cahill, Verbeek, the Socceroos or the FFA in any way.
I think that News Limited has gone over the top in their usual fashion and have not increased their readership or credibility by any degree at all.
Dave said | August 3rd 2009 @ 5:24pm | Report comment
They gave it to Jones over this in the SMH
http://www.smh.com.au/news/sport/silver-lining-to-fittler-fiasco/2009/06/26/1245961404519.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1
Midfielder said | June 28th 2009 @ 11:40pm | Report comment
Jimbo
Agree
jimbo said | June 28th 2009 @ 11:45pm | Report comment
And it just keeps coming from the others . . .
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,25702756-5001021,00.html
GeneralAshnak said | June 29th 2009 @ 8:43am | Report comment
Dave, not always. Also Deepthroat was able to produce corroborative evidence to support what was going on. So far 1 person who is not employed by the newspaper has said that there was an incident. Everyone else who was either there or investigated the ‘incident’ has said that nothing, zero, zilch, happened. Can’t really argue with multiple eye witness accounts can you?