Del Piero is harming the A-League

Every player tries to influence the referee. Timely veteran or new kid on the block anyone will try to get an advantage off the referee. Yes ADP will go to ground easily with minimal contact, i wouldnt call him a diver, but his experience and knowledge allows him to manipulate the referee into getting his side the upper hand. Any player in his position pro or amateur would do the same as ADP. He is a master at football and id call it wrong to say he is "harming" the a-league in any way.

+1 There might not have been contact, but as I said to anyone who'd listen at the time and have been saying ever since, if I'd have been the referee in that (Spanish?) ref's position and seen that clumsy challenge in the box and the attacker hit the deck, I would have signalled a penalty too. Stupid challenge. Almost as bad as Cahill's against Japan that arguably should have had him sent off before he won us the game (and ultimately qualification for the second round). Of course, where we were much unluckier with refereeing in WCs was with Harry's red-card handball against Ghana in 2010 that was line-ball in many respects -- but not many people complained about that, because it didn't involve a dive.

I forgot to mention how little this guy knows about ADP cause if you knew him and football you would not write such a silly article, as if to say it is hurting the game, maybe you should look around ,the game hasnt progressed anywhere near the other codes so could it be that people dont want it to progress?? this article as far as im concerned has been written by someone who does not know football

couldnt agree more , the issue is the defenders and other teams only know one way which is fouling to stop him because we dont know any other play, maybe its time we taught younger players how to play with players of ADP calibre then maybe we will start growing better players and stop complaining about Just Maybe!

very good point when it doesnt go our way we blame anyone and everyone, neil should not have gone down and maybe we would not have conceded a penalty but also in another game the REF would not have sent off Matterazzi and it would have been game over with 11 on 11

I can not understand how is possible that such amount of link has been wasted in relation to this topic and I find this article outrages and offensive...the journalist wrote:" Yes you heard me right. ADP is harming the A-League in the issue of simulation and respect to the referee". I wonder if this journalist has any idea of what he is talking about and what real professional football means all around the world...Alessandro Del Piero's entire history and career should deserve a bit more of respect!!! ADP simply knows exactly where and when To make his move In order to position his body between the ball and the defender. It is not ADP's fault if the opposition defender does not have the experience to tackle him in a way that does not produce the fouls! Mr. Lachie this sport name is called football and not rugby...and ADP'S prestige, skills and fair play are a trade mark of his career in the entire world where football is played at the top level ( with all due respect for the A-League). Football has his own rule and u just need to roll with it....otherwise I suggest to forget football and became a rugby journalist!!!

Lachie, ADP is not harming the A League but i can see the point you are trying to make. He is a world class player.Not only does he have the skill to beat be a player but can draw a foul from a less experience opponent. Does this require skill? Yes Is there risk involved ? Yes Would most players go down in the penalty box when fouled even if they can regain their balance?Yes Does he use his profile in this situation to his advantage?Yes Is it bad sportsmanship?No Should we teach our Junior players this?

Absolute rubbish article! If anyone actually thinks that he's a diver, they have absolutely no clue about the game. The guy isnt that quick across field anymore but he's mind is the quickest I've ever seen! He doesnt dive, he does go to ground easily sometimes, but his always being fouled. He's so good on the ball, that he either gets past the player or is fouled. The only people I've heard in the media this week, that say he's a diver are people/journos from other codes that have no appreciation for the art of our game. Even as an unhappy Victory supporter from last week's game, I can say ADP, he's just an absolute master.

@ Lachie: Congrats on choosing a rather touchy subject as one of your first artciles - that takes courage and strength of conviction. You also boldly titled the piece with the aim of getting people's attention (& possibly riling up a few readers?!) and probably sucked a fair few readers in with that so kudos for that tactic too! I disagree with your opinion and have 2 main counters to it: 1) ADP doesn't go down too easily and 2) the refs aren't being conned by him anymore than any other player (although I will accept your assertion that no ref wants to be THE ref that missed a foul that injured ADP & put him out of the game for a period of time). 1) Even at park-level football, it doesn't take much to bring a player down even if he wants to stay up. The way the upper body's momentum is travelling, it only takes either a slight nudge to overbalance and fall or a little bit of contact against a players feet and they trip. Add to this that HAL players are being paid, have been developing a seriousness/committment to their play for their entire career, and are likely to be above-average competitive people and you get a defender who when they commit to a tackle will go in hard enough to cause a fair amount of immediate pain (think about how you react to stubbing your toe or having your fingers clenched in a door/under something heavy and you'll understand that the initial reaction and pain is the strongest and that you can get over it pretty quickly after that - same thing in football, it hurts like hell when someone steps on your foot or you get a knee in the calf/thigh, but you tend to be able to run it off soon afterwards!). ADP has been having this type of treatment all his career and whilst just because in Serie A its acceptable doesn't mean it needs to be here, it is also accentuated by the fact that he is obviously so much better than most HAL players in putting his body in between the ball & a defender - hence why we're discussing this topic about him and not another player! 2) The refs call the game as they see it - for better or worse. There's currently no video-refing (except within the media) so they can only go on what they see and feel then & there. IMO, you're mixing ADP's obvious better close-control of the ball (than most if not all other HAL players) with his status as one of the best players of the past generation (if not all time). Having watched a fair few SFC home games last season whilst I was back living in Sydney (9) plus numerous others on tv, it was quite easy to see how much better he was at controlling the ball than most of his opponents and most tellingly, they weren't used to playing against someone of his skill. So whilst admitting my bias as a SFC fan, most other neutrals have also the opinion that ADP is easily one of if not THE best player in the league and it is as a result of his ability and skill that we're talking about him getting preferential treatment by the refs. Yes, there is an inherent risk that refs would favour him so that they don't 'miss' the foul that potentially ends his career. However, there is also the risk that the HAL teams take this (perceived favourtism) up in private with the FFA and the refs get a dressing down behind closed doors with repeat complaints resulting in demotion from refereeing. IMO, refs are also more inclined to be rule-followers (although there are obviously bad apples in this bunch too) as is their nature - why else would they be refs apart from the power-trip and the higher up the level of refereeing is the less scope for the power-trip to hold sway within the match. So to round off, IMO the refs are simply making the calls as they see them and assuming that over the course of a season bad decisions are evenly spread amongst the refs such that they are kept at a certain level (eg: 80-20 good-bad), the reason ADP gets the focus of ref decisions is simply due to his skill (& SFC's style of play) means that he's statistically the most involved. I don't have the stats for his time in the HAL so far, but I'd like to see them and reckon he'd easily be the most fouled player in the HAL. One final point, you write that "Del Piero is setting an extremely poor example to the youngsters that look up to him, only adding to what is an extremely serious issue of disrespect towards the referee that is prevalent throughout football, from under 9′s on a cold windy Saturday to the Sydney Derby in front of 40 thousand." Yes, it doesn't look great that a player yells at the ref, but consider the circumstances: a lot of adrenalin, constant fouling, the desire to win all mean that we're not thinking about how the little under-9's kid sees the way their favourite player reacts to seeing that player yell at the ref. However, contrast this to the way he conducts himself off the field and during interviews & fan sessions in particular and you might want to change your view of whether he's setting "an extremely poor example to the youngsters that look up to him" as he's possibly the most humble player in the HAL given his successful career and how others with similar successfully careers are polar-opposite in their behaviour.

This is probably the worst commentary I have read on any sport. ADP is a master at confounding and frustrating defenders. Fouls on him are of course a consequence. To insinuate ADP engages in simulation, diving or being over-theatrical is ridiculous. The vast majority of players will call to the referee asking for for a penalty at the slightest hint of a possible foul when they have lost possession. How many players will routinely have their arms up to call for a throw in or goal kick/ corner kick in their favour? Why is this theatricality that all players indulge in not being criticised? Ever watched cricket? "Howzat!" is echoing around the grounds before the umpire starts raising his hand or puts it deeper in his pocket. No one cares!

I don't think the "hardcore men of other sports" could legitimately say that,even if ADP was at fault. Many times ,I've seen AFL players go down,"writhing in agony",only to find that the Umpire won't award a free kick.. They drag themselves to their feet,look shaky for a while to keep up the pretense,then are back into the game as if nothing had happened. I'm not so sure about "diving" in NRL & Union.as I don't know the games well,but I have seen some fairly suspect performances there,too! It would be a bit too much like living in a glass house! :)

Ian I'd never "claim you’ve only watched one sport"...because I have no idea who you are. Do I think "Del Piero is harming the A-League"? No, not at all. Quite the reverse in fact. But the writer does think that these supposed tactics by ADP are hurting the image of the comp, or even the game. Again, I don't think I agree with that...but I can't agree that merely discussing it is "bringing the game into disrepute".

Jez Walker showed how to play on him last year for Heart. ADP had a quiet game and drew very few fouls.

To put the logic behind the claim of stupidity behind this article, ADP is definitly not hurting the a-league and is not having a bad influence on players at all. On the contrary, to practice defending against a world class player only helps your game. It teaches how to be cautious, and lethal when you get it right. He shows attackers how to draw fouls too. Against quality opposition when down to ten men against your rival when your team has three precious points in their grasp and you're the captain, you will do anything to keep your team in it. This is not an excuse for simulation, but rather for drawing fouls against inexperienced defenders who fall prey to help salvage the game for his team.

Whoah can we stop with the insults. Give the kid a break. It's his first article. I think he has assumed that we all already know of all the wonderful things ADP has done for the game in this country. He simply feels that this is one area where ADP has let down the league a little bit. Although I don't agree with him, as the ability to draw and win fouls is a skill in football. Many in the Aus sporting landscape prefer to see players battle on, again I don't follow this view but it's just how people feel. In the future I would advise Lachie to be a little more balanced in his views. But good on him for sticking his neck out. I'm sure his next article will be much better.

Couldn't agree more. Embarrassing.

Maybe it's you that have not gone to a game. I have gone with my friend who is a licensed coach and I thought I knew a lot. He pointed out to me many things I did not notice. We both saw how many times ADP got pushed and fouled without any action been taken. It was against Melbourne Victory of all teams, last season. I would like to see if he was not fouled how the flow of the game would be. Mediocre comments usually come from rushed analysis.

+1

This is by far the stupidest article I have read. He is a great champion,legend and gentleman. Of course it's my wish whether I will battle a foul or go with the motion. At 38 years & 5'8" height he should not feel that much combative each time it's simple and plain. At 28 high paced C. Ronaldo with 6'1" is literally throwing himself with no or minimal touch...here you can ill comment to Ronaldo. But not Alex Del Piero.

Yes Del Piero really harming the A-League with record attendances and TV ratings, record shirt sales and merchandising, record numbers of junior registrations, record sponsorships and revenues, SFC golden boot for most number of goals, live broadcasts of SFC games all over Europe South America and Asia . . . Let's deport him now and tow him back to Italy. :)