Australia’s Lucas Neill, bottom, trips Italy’s Fabio Grosso in the penalty box during the last minutes of the Australia vs Italy Round of 16 World Cup soccer match at Fritz Walter Stadium in Kaiserslautern, Germany, Monday, June 26, 2006. Italy was awarded a penalty and won the match 1-0. AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian
Four years on, and with another World Cup on the horizon, Australia’s indignation over Fabio Grosso’s dive to send Italy to the quarters in Germany at the expense of the Socceroos still cuts deep.
The controversy has reignited as a topic of debate as a result of Grosso’s admission that he “accentuated” his fall over the grounded Lucas Neill in the final minutes of the Round of 16 match in Kaiserslautern.
(Accentuated, in case you were wondering, means “to make more noticeable or prominent”, according to my Mac’s dictionary.)
Grosso, speaking to The Roar’s own Davidde Corran in the Football + World Cup preview magazine, said, “In this instance when Neill slid in, maybe I accentuated it a little bit. However you must remember it was the last minute of an extremely difficult game and everyone was tired.
“I felt the contact so I went down. Therefore, I say again, I didn’t initiate it … it’s true that I felt the touch and didn’t have the strength to go forward. Some people believe me, and some don’t. However for me, even after seeing the video images, it’s a penalty.
“I admit that it wasn’t glamorous but it wasn’t a scandal,” he said.
Maybe not a scandal for Grosso and the triumphant Italians, but a huge scandal that still lingers with Socceroos fans.
Listening and reading the responses to the debate four years on presents a fascinating portrait of Australia’s naivety when it comes to the nuances of the world game.
Australia was undoubtedly the victim of gamesmanship by Grosso – an unsightly and unfortunate aspect of the game that can decide matches due to its low scoring nature – but Australia needs to move on from this feeling of being a victim of a conspiracy that still remains.
Ask the English, who still lament the “Hand of God” 24 years after the fact, about being cheated at a World Cup and you’ll learn this isn’t a new phenomenon unique to us.
It’s these controversial moments that have helped create World Cup folklore and build anticipation for the next rendition.
The sooner we embrace this, the sooner we will appreciate the uniqueness of the game.
The impact diving has on the game’s popularity and acceptance within Australia has been hotly debated here on The Roar of late, and Grosso’s dive undoubtedly did some damage to the perception of football in the country. Diving and other forms of simulation may be un-Australian, but they shouldn’t preclude Australians from embracing the game, and perhaps part of that process is putting Grosso’s dive behind us and moving on.
The controversy lingers not just because of its controversial nature but also due to the fact it was such a bitter way for the Soccroos’ dream run to end.
There was a sense of disbelief that the run, which saw the Socceroos defeat Uruguay in such dramatic circumstances, perform such an incredible comeback against Japan and survive the nail bitter against Croatia should have been ended by a cheat.
Destiny was unjustly deprived, and listen to the masses and you would assume World Cup glory was ours for the taking. After all, Italy went all the way. That could have been us, they say.
But let’s not allow the passage of time to cloud our view of reality.
The Socceroos played a man up on the Italians for the majority of the second half following Marco Materazzi’s straight red card in the 50th minute and were unable to breakdown the Italian defense.
This was an Italian team, let’s not forget, that only conceded twice in the whole tournament – an own goal against the United States of America in the group stages and a penalty in the final against France.
Guus Hiddink’s decision to hold off on his two remaining substitutes, waiting for extra-time, proved one gamble too many for the Dutchman.
Particularly flawed is the assumption that had Australia overcome Italy in extra-time or penalties, they would have waltzed past Ukraine in the quarter-final – Italy having defeated them 3-0 – and set up an incredible semi-final match with hosts Germany.
Once again, Australia demonstrates its naivety for the game.
The best and most deserving teams don’t always win in tournament football, so moments of genius and lunacy, mistakes, referee misjudgements and the like can often decide World Cups.
Fairness and logic don’t always win out.
Football is far from Utopian.
It’s time for Australia to move on from the dive of 2006 and embrace whatever is in store for the Socceroos in South Africa.
chas
Guest
buddy I'd just shut up about that we learnt this from you i.e maradona hand of god was a fair and just goal
Gonks
Guest
Never Forget.
M
Guest
Yes,you should get over it.Because IT WAS PENALTY.Just accept it.
Gwylim
Guest
Here are some examples from the 2010 World Cup. Funny how all the culprits are South American. Brazilian striker Luís Fabiano handled the ball twice in the build-up to Brazil's second goal, which helped Brazil win the match 3–1. Tevez scored from an offside position from within the Mexican penalty box when the game stood at 0–0. He was a metre offside. In a quarter-final match against Ghana, Uruguayan striker Luis Suárez handled the ball to prevent a last minute Ghana goal.
Gwylim
Guest
The corrupt dealings by FIFA officials shows that the whole system is rotten, right down to the refereeing. There are plenty of examples of dodgy referee decisions, not just Grosso's DIVE. In 2010 there were heaps, including Henry's "goal" against Ireland, Tevez's offside goal v Mexico, Suarez's "hand of god" against Ghana, of which he said afterwards that it was the best save of the tournament. 2014 Suarez bites an opponent. Not surprising. Uruguay won in 1930 and 1950 by kicking the crap out of their opposition. My barber is Italian. He thought it was a penalty. Musolino? Not sure where that name is from.
Marty
Guest
Yeah especially when the current 2015 FIFA corruption scandal, continues to unwind...
Johnny Boy Jnr
Guest
Not a good look for Italians. They are the first team mentioned when it comes to these sub-masculine acts. Although tournament winners, most countries weren't happy for them as they refuse to play with integrity or honour. Materazzi's antics with Zidane were an absolute disgrace.
Cudartz cudozartzovic
Guest
Cahill gave away what should have been a penalty vs japan right after he scored. Australia's campaign would have been done and dusted right there. People will argue shwarzer was fouled on japans first goal which i think was bs. Kewell's goal was offside vs croatia which put us through to meet Italy. We should have had a penalty or two for hand ball tho and scored a legit goal that was chalked off. Against Italy the red card they got was debatable and changed the complexion of the game. They were the better team before then and more than likely would have won if stayed 11 v 11. Why do people ignore these things? If youre going to point out one thing then point out the rest. Was it a penalty? watching it live i thought wtf grosso was going to get a second yellow for a dive. I couldnt believe it was a pk. Watching the replay afterwards i actually thought it was a penalty. Grosso def played for it and made the most of it but it was there. Neil's a moron and an amateur wtf slide tackles in the box in stoppage time in a world cup knockout game? let alone any game ffs. Grosso's a left footer also as if he wouldnt cut in he always does that. Penalty. Get over it. Goes both ways. Funny how ppl became experts after this game. Go back 4 years earlier and ask Italy about all their goals chalked off and yet another dodgy send off vs hiddink in the 2nd round vs korea. Maybethe socceroos would have won if they Had Chris Judd starting in for the injured Harry Kewell. How we missed Haaaaazzzaaa!!!!!! Go KFC! Go Brazil!
John Divots
Guest
"Australians need to get over the Italian dive of 2006".... so Mr Adrian Musolino, you actually agree it was a dive. :)
Connie
Guest
haha I think we have a cultural misunderstanding here. 'Theatrics' is part of European and Sth American football and you will see it in most games. I don't think it's fair to condemn it as an Australian. Anthropologists would say that you need to live in a culture to understand it. I can understand it's upsetting to have your team lose. And certainly I agree that diving is cheating. But what Grosso did was NOT diving, rather he accentuated the foul, as Adrian said. Neill made a mistake, he poorly challenged Grosso in the box. Grosso capitalised. The penalty was there regardless of the 'dive'. I think Australians need to start opening their minds to the fact that there are other ways of doing things, and it doesn't mean that it's the wrong way if it's not the norm here. After all, World Cup football has existed for many years before Australia came along. The reality is that if Australia decides they are above the existing culture of football, they will probably never advance further than they have. Take it or leave it.
Bludger
Guest
Funny thing is, the writer of the article is of Italian heritage. Most of us have put the infamous incident to the back of our minds, filing it away for the day when we can get our vengence.
Al
Guest
I don't believe it was a penalty however going to ground in the box is fraught with disaster. Bresciano should have fouled Grosso near the corner flag and not allowed him to get into the box to begin with.
George
Guest
Why is this still an issue... Neil was reckless, It was a penalty, Australia lost. It happens. Why don't you ask Italians or Spanish about WC 2002, when they were both legitamately cheated out of a World Cup... This is just whinging, we would have lost to Ukraine anyways...
Alders
Guest
Italy would have smashed us. I suppose wer might be forced to become a football nation then.
Alders
Guest
And look at the punishment handed out for bloodgate. Match fixing isn't great either and we all know that that is not just isolated to the Italian league.
Phutbol
Guest
I've only seen the Emerton handball once but It didnt look intentional to me.
Roger
Guest
I think we over it, but there is now a permanent scar, and we now think of the Italians as divers. Having a healthy dislike for another national team is all part of the football maturing process.
Farqwar
Guest
Shane Some good arguments there. The qualities you list are certainly important attributes in being a man and would be found equally in sportsmen of football, cricket, AFL or the Rugbies. Diving in soccer, that is without contact or as the instigator of the contact, is indeed dishonourable and I think most people have agreed on that. But if a defender makes contact with your legs and not the ball it is a foul and it is not dishonourable to call for the free kick, most commonly done by going to ground. If you get robbed and no policeman sees it is it dishonourable to report it. This tactic is necessary to insure the game is based on skill and doesnt become an overly physical contest where the player gets his legs hacked until he can't stand any longer. This may seem a strange concept to you but to me it is a skill that can be performed with honour; you either play on or you go down then get straight back up and play on. As for women being the only ones capable of sensitivity, I cant agree on that. I am just as capable of nuturing my child as my wife is and I will certainly be teaching him that caring for his fellow human beings, particularly those less fortunate than himself, is an admirable quality. I will also teach him that being a man is a distinction from being a woman and he should be pround of being a man, just not to get to constrained by the rules that social norms place on being a man. The debate is actually about Australians getting over the "dive" by Grosso in the World Cup, and they should! I think Grosso was dishonourable as he initiated the contact but the Ref made the call, Italy won the world cup and Australia should move on.
Shane
Guest
Farqwar What makes a man has nothing to do with physical strength. Integrity, dignity, honour and courage. These are the things that make a man a man. I certainly don't think that sensitive fits though. We have nurturers....they are called women. It is a sad indictment on the modern world when people think that being a man is all about bash and barge. I am not suggesting that any other sport is perfect. The debate is about diving in soccer. Diving diminishes soccer.
AndyRoo
Roar Guru
Loved it. Still a bit of life in Les yet as I thought he did a great job. The extra effort to go to Melbourne and film the ground as well as getting the vision from Knights games and his tme in Croatia made it much better than your regular studio interview.