Australia’s clash with Oman in the Asian World Cup Qualifier on Tuesday night was disappointing on numerous levels.
Despite a spirited fight-back from the Socceroos in the second half to even the ledger at 2-2, the solitary point was simply not good enough against an opponent notoriously weak away from home.
Holger Osieck’s troops will now have a tussle on their hands to win automatic qualification to Brazil 2014, after minnow Jordan upset group leader Japan 2-1, moving them into second spot.
While Australia still has a game in hand, it will almost certainly need to claim maximum points in its final two home fixtures against Jordan in Melbourne and Iraq in Sydney.
While there were many issues to dissect from the tenuous Socceroos performance including tactical analysis, selection and substitutions, the subjects of simulation and timewasting have seemingly been ignored by media outlets.
A football game is intended to be played for 90 minutes.
In Tuesday’s outing, there was only around 75 minutes, at best, of actual playing time.
This was due to the Omani’s disgraceful simulation antics every few minutes.
Yes, Australia played poorly and can only blame themselves for not winning on home turf.
However, something needs to be done regarding some of these Asian and Middle Eastern nations who are repeat offenders of abysmal playacting in tandem with their mischievous attempts to deceive referees.
The straw which broke the camel’s back was when an Omani player deliberately went to the turf in the second period, wincing comically in pain.
Once the stretcher came to his aid, two minutes had elapsed.
What happens when the medical team place him on the sideline? He gets up instantly, trying to grab the referee’s attention to re-enter the field of play.
This, in conjunction with the many other antics on the night, was a downright disgrace, not only to the Omani football – who doesn’t appear too bothered by the disruptive tactics – but also to the game we love so dearly.
Football as a spectacle suffers. Supporters become ostensibly frustrated. It ruins the image of the game and any momentum the opposition’s may have.
Socceroos centre-half Michael Thwaite couldn’t hold back his displeasure post-game, arguing that the Omani team were not approaching the game with any spirit of fair-play.
“I don’t like the way they play, rolling around and all that stuff,” he revealed.
Many competitions and countries around the globe are not devoid of timewasting and simulation – all nations are somewhat guilty in these regard.
But Oman’s blatant disregard of the rules was certainly elevated to another level. It’s a trend many Australians have witnessed when facing Asian opposition.
In relation to timewasting, how do we eradicate these cancer-like tactics from world football?
World governing body FIFA must be stringent in policing this. These new rules should be implemented to help exterminate these time-wasting tactics.
1. If a player receives treatment on the pitch, once on the sideline, they cannot re-enter the field of play for a minimum of two minutes.
2. If a player is stretchered off, assuming they are fit to continue, they cannot re-enter the field of play for a minimum of five minutes.
If these simple rules are employed by FIFA, it would go a long way towards eradicating stalling tactics.
On Tuesday night, it was clearly evident that Oman coach Paul Le Guen had no problems with his players’ behaviour, as evidenced by his antagonising gestures towards Osieck on the sideline.
While this deceitful trend isn’t so much of an issue in Australian football, it is widely seen in international football, and is perceived very negatively on our shores.
Unfortunately, for some of these nations, it is part of their culture to win or draw by any means possible – even if it involves deceitful conduct.
Let’s hope that in the near future FIFA gets on the front foot and makes a proactive attempt to stamp this behaviour out of the modern game.
Courtesy of Goal Weekly
Follow Robbie on Twitter @RobertDiFabio
Rick
Guest
Hmm, think the real answer lies within the history of the Referee . As a Ref/and former player, I have known and loved , yes sometimes not so much, all of that . esp when a bigger stronger player , holds their space, and a lesser physically built , cops a piss weak free kick.(no doubt we have all seen that ). But as a referee(and a more then reasonably qualified coach), personally, want to see good clean football,as we all do . Now considering what I have mentioned , former player ,coach and Ref, i can smell BULLSHIT a mile away. Problem from the ref angle..IF there is even the slightest contact , diving .. can`t be punished, (esp at speed) as more may have happened , then can be physically seen , however `grass rolling`that amplifies the BULLSHIT can be by `Unsporting behavior`, and as a Ref`, I suggest `quietly` . If the other team didn`t have advantage now , `you`d be copping a Y1 and a free against ,so just play the game son
Matsu
Guest
Nobody is suggesting that it is "OK" . . . or even tolerable for that matter. But the obvious conclusion you have to draw from the results and the reactions of opponents is that it absolutely does "Work". And very effectively at that. SInce there are some teams that know how to use this tactic effectively to "psyche out" opponents, you can be sure that they will continue to do so. Youd have a far easier time stamping out fistfights in NHL hockey that trying to get Gulf countries to give up Grassrolling. Furthermore its even harder to prove or punish than diving. At the end of the day there is no way to "prove" that a player isnt injured. Not even after the fact . . . I played one entire season in university with a broken toe (I still pay the price, every winter). Every week Id have to get attention at least once in the course of a match, but I always got up and returned to play as soon as physically possible, because there wasnt anyone else on the team who could contribute as much, healthy, as I could with a broken toe. Would you have given me a yellow every time I had to get ice-sprayed to insentitivity? No, the only cure for Grassrolling is to just deal with it. The only teams that do it are the ones that know its their only hope of getting a result. Score first. Dont let the opponent back in the game. If you cant . . . you just accept that youre going to witness a Grassrolling exhibition. If you let the tactic upset you, then the Grassrollers have accomplished their objective.
Muz
Guest
I see your point but presumably FIFA could lay down some rules. Bloody FIFA say they hate diving and they call it the scourge of football but they won't do anything about it.
Punter
Guest
This is the problem & I hate diving & acting, but now you are dealing with alot different cultures & some cultures do view it the same way differently to you & me & this is the issue. You are dealing with the world game. In some countries it's regarded as cheating in others it's regarded as cunningness, but you & I definitely see as cheating.
Dave
Guest
How about the authorities turn a blind eye to any streaker willing to run on naked and tbag the offending player? We'd soon find out who was faking that way! That'd learn em!
Muz
Guest
Just because it's been happening for years doesn't make it right. Yellow card a few of them, make 'em wait before they come back on and the problem will disappear despite you saying it won't. Just like they should be giving out retrospective reds for diving in a game after a video review of the concluded match. You'd only need to do it for 3 months or so and the scourge would be stamped out forever.
Matsu
Guest
Cant believe that an Australian football fan would post an article like this. How long have you guys been in the AFC now? For GoDs sake, man, when are you going to wake up and smell the rice porridge? Grassrolling is something that teams from the Gulf region have been doing for almost a century, and no amount of complaining or proposal of new rules is going to change that. Ask any Iranian football fan (or other country in the region; its just that the Iranians have had to put up with it more frequently, and for longer than most other countries) and theyll tell you that Grassrolling is a national sport in most Gulf countries, with its own specific techniques, strategies, point system and year-end awards for the "Best Eleven". Some referees in the region do in fact make grassrollers wait on the sideline for 2-3 minutes before they let them back on the pitch. It all depends on who you draw as the referee. But at the end of the day, there is only one way to deal with the problem, and it never fails to produce results. Score first. Score early. Dont relinquish the lead. Problem solved.
Cameron
Roar Guru
Them are fighting words Blaze! What sport do you follow?
Blaze
Guest
Just proves soccer is soft as butter
Muz
Guest
Double post
Muz
Guest
Exactly. That's why it should be a yellow card for unsportsmanlike conduct.
holly
Guest
",,,,, cannot return to the field of play until 5 minutes has elapsed ...." what if the injury is as a result of a foul by the opposition ? Why should the injured player's team be penalised ?
max green
Guest
stop the clock. then there's no time wasted, and it saves players genuinely injured getting automatically penalised by a few minutes off the park like some people are suggesting. it works fine in other codes. if the player is down for 2 minutes - stretcher. if a player is stretchered off - 2,3,4,5 minutes on the sideline without return. how hard is that to figure out. diving is lame, there will be limited aussie fans as long as players fake dive, no one here is fooled. you want more fans? stop the bs.
holly
Guest
time wasting by the opposition is only a problem if 1. you let it affect you 2 the ref doesn't add the time on. also of course its very subjective - if its your team doing it its not such an issue is it ?
Australian Rules
Guest
+1
Muz
Guest
Any player that leaves the ground on a stretcher to only jump to his feet once he leaves the ground and reenters the field of play receives a yellow card for unsporting conduct. Done!
pete4
Guest
Pretty sure it's the reason all National member associations fly to Zurich every year. FIFA Board outlines agenda items and everyone discusses any issues/changes
Sailosi
Guest
I don't have a problem with it. It's part of the game.
Mr Celery
Guest
Since when has a FIFA decision required unanimous approval? Not in my lifetime!
Mr Celery
Guest
Simple answer is to allow one trainer onto the field of play to treat injuries while play continues, if the injury occurs outside the six yard boxes. If inside the six yard box, the ref still stops play. Should reduce stoppages without affecting play too much. Surely teams can avoid the injured player (and trainer) if injured elsewhere on the field. A player receiving treatment cannot be counted in offside decisions, and is regarded the same as the referee or a goal post. Another alternative is to add time for injury stoppages but double or triple the time added on. That should remove the incentive. Another alternative, which was practiced in the Oman match by the Socceroos, was for the un-offending team to simply play on and ignore the cheating player. If the cheating team wants to play with 10 players, fine. The 'gentlemanly conduct' of kicking the ball out of play to allow treatment is being abused by the 'ungentlemanly conduct' of feigning injuries. So, well done Socceroos for playing on in those circumstances.