Well, our friend from Brasil made a mistake. It can happen. A penalty to Ghana with the score one-nil for Italy can change the match. Mean tackles at the legs from behind neglected to book, and no card for a dive. The pressure on the man must have been great. What will the referee do that has the brasil match?

Is It not better to keep the name secret until the match starts. Is it not time to pull football into the 21 century and use tv images. Look at rugby.

So far i've seen a lot of unnecessary yellow cards, seems like the refs are trying to have a bigger impact on the games than they should.

Well, the game I remember the most was from the Germany v. Senegal in the previous world cup. There was an incredulous amount of yellow cards given out (absolutely ridiculous, I can't remember the exact number buts its at the very least 8 or more yellow cards) and even the goal keeper, Oliver Kahn was tagged with one.

I was laughing in stitches, it was hilarious.

By and large the ref's haven't been too bad (with the odd exception). What it is is FIFA bringing in new rules for automatic yellow cards. The ref's are just following the rules. But it does lead to loads of unnecessary yellows.

Since none of those so-called penalties in the Italy - Ghana game was a penalty, no, he did his job pretty well.

And, after looking at the referees from the previous cup, these ones are ****ing gold.

There do seem to have been a lot of yellow cards. Almost one for every foul. You can see that impact when you look at fantasy game results where yellow cards are worth negative points. Usually that would not be too much of an issue, but in this tournament there are negative points everywhere.

15 yellow cards for the Portugal vs Netherlands game, wasnt it? 4 red cards...I know that is correct for sure...ridiculous.

And if anyone has seen that complete mockery of fair play in the Australia vs. Italy match, then they will surely agree that the refs in this World Cup have hit a new low. I am soooo angry right now... :flaming:

Faye, it was Germany - Cameroon, not Senegal.

It was disappointing for Australia to go out like that. Unfortunately, Grosso got a fairly soft penalty awarded, and Totti made the most of it. The red card from earlier in the game was questionable, IMO - although the fact that Bresciano was being hacked down just outside the box suggests a deliberateness that merits a straight red.

These things happen. Nobody expected the Socceroos to qualify over Uruguay, to beat Japan, or to make the round of 16. The Socceroos can hold themselves up knowing that they were (arguably) never truly outplayed and outclassed, even against Brazil and Italy.

And just so no-one thinks I'm being magnanimous in defeat... I really hope Italy gets a bollocking in their next match.

Against Ukraine? Not likely... In fact, it could be another really boring, low scoring match :sleep:

Yeah...but odds are they're going to face Brazil in the semis...oh how I hope Italy get hammered 6-0 or worse!! :flaming:

By and large the ref's haven't been too badObviously you havn't seen any Australian matches, Barmy. Trust me they have been awful in every match we've played.
Vs. Japan - goal paid by umpire, despite obvious obstruction of our goaly (Schwartzer). This was the only goal until the last 15 minutes where we scored three (to win 3-1). The Egyptian umpire later told Schwartzer something to the effect that he made an error, but it didn't matter because god was on our side

Vs. Brazil possible exception to the bad umpiring decisions

Vs. Croatia Some Croatian guy was given three yellow cards - need I say more

Vs. Italy Full on soft penalty that arguably cost us the game.

Oh well, the boys exceeded all expectations, and as an Australian I'm proud of them. GO AUSSIE!!!!

I posted that before the few disasters we've had in the refereeing department.

When are they going to introduce video refs? Every other major sport makes use of technology, so why not the so-called 'greatest sport on Earth'?

Plus I want to see them get tougher on that ridiculous play acting. It completely ruins the game and should be stamped out by automatic bookings.

Joseph Blatter (http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/060628/1/8dip.html) won't ever get video in football. So we will still have crappy refs.
I'm really tired of refs playing for 'big' teams or worst yet local teams (think Korea); Ballack stoped a ball with his arm clearly intentional and we didn't even got the reply of the play, they replayed every single foul 'daygos' did but almost none from germans... heck.. I'm really $%&//%$$&%... (Argentina did deserved to lose, not because the referee but because just the moment Riquelme was replaced by Cambiasso)

When are they going to introduce video refs? Every other major sport makes use of technology, so why not the so-called 'greatest sport on Earth'? They've been plenty of calls for it, but I'm against the idea. I don't want the human aspect taken out of the sport. Would you like the umpires to refer to videos for each LBW decision in test cricket?

Plus I want to see them get tougher on that ridiculous play acting. It completely ruins the game and should be stamped out by automatic bookings. And what happens when the guy is really hurt and the ref got it wrong? Obvious dives are punished with an automatic booking, but it's hard to do that with play-acting (which, to be fair, rarely happens). I've seen occasions where a player has gone down writhing in agony, I've screamed at the TV that there's nothing wrng with him and he's just conning the referee... then it turns out he's turn a cruciate or snapped his achilles. Sometimes bad injuries can look really soft.

play-acting (which, to be fair, rarely happens). You're clearly watching a different World Cup to me then. I see ridiculous play acting every five minutes.

what happens when the guy is really hurt and the ref got it wrong One minute you want the human aspect and the next you're worried about getting it wrong. You can't have it both ways!

Er... yeah, that's exactly what I mean. The ref can't book someone for acting injured just in case they ARE injured, so they can't call it. I don't get what you mean. You find a ref with the bollocks to give someone a card when they are on the floor writhing around. He gives a card then the stretcher comes on and takes the player off because he actually had a ruptured ligament. Not gonna happen. A better idea would be to give the 'injured' player 5 minutes 'recupperation time' off the pitch so they can properly 'recover'. You'd see less then.

If, on the other hand you're taling about diving, that happens in all sports.

There's no need to take out the 'human' side of the sport, but sometimes, a good or bad call can decide the game; there was this play, can't remember the German player, he was about to shot when Tevez slided and took the ball away from the 'shoot path' so the German player shot just air and he felt down like in pain for about 2 minutes, the replay was almost instant, so, the referee can easy watch the replay and judge if it was so bad; Ballack was touched near his shoulder and he droped down the grass like he was an eye out of his face; there were lots of plays were players got yellow cards for nothing, and were players who didn't get anything for almost brake a leg. Vide should help a lot in this kind of plays. Another way could be at the end of the game, if someone got yellow or red for nothing, that player could not get punishment and if someone got away could get it.
I don't know, but in this world cup were really bad calls that decided some games (ask Australians) and if you ask me, this world cup isn't fair anymore for me, because there's no way that Italy won that game legaly.

I don't know, but in this world cup were really bad calls that decided some games (ask Australians) and if you ask me, this world cup isn't fair anymore for me, because there's no way that Italy won that game legaly.That game stopped being fair at the bull**** red card. Italy knew the referee was bad and they had seen the bad side of it, so it was time to abuse that. The penalty was bull****, but so was the red card, so it evens out, I'd say.

The red car is doubtful, the guy slided very badly; the penalty was a very bad call; and even if were Argentina instead of Italy the one who got the 'gift' I still would think it is unfair; those kind of calls always favour big teams.

He had one leg on the ground, and therefore NOT a red card. It's in the book of rules, written down. He did not have any cards before. Bull**** card.

It's just ridiculous watching people clutching their faces in agony when the replays show that nobody went anywhere near their face.

And players should be marched 10 metres for talking back to the ref. In cricket and rugby, there is no tolerance for the spoilt brat arguing with officials that goes on in soccer.

Yes, I think we have already established that play-acting is wrong and is bad for the sport, w're all bored of you going on about it now mate.

It's still the greatest sport in the world though. It'll take more than a bit of rolling around and face clutching to change that.

When compared to football players though, rugby players show amazing restraint. If a 18 stone man tackled me around the head (against the rules in rugby for those not in the know) you better believe I'd be in the refs face shouting my head off and demanding the guy get sent off. But you're liable to sit out 10 mins if you do that in rugby. Madness. I don't know how they do it.

w're all bored of you going on about it now mate. Just like I'm bored of seeing these guys play-acting instead of trying to score goals.

Stick to cricket and rugby then, and stop commenting on something you obviously don't like :p .

But it could be so much BETTER if they took the teenage tantrums out of the game, by giving the refs more protection.

We all know that vidoe replay is the answer to misstakes. But the key is how we do it. We loose time arguing over a card, and treating the injury. In that time we can have a dozen replays viewed by the fourt official.

Keep it simple. view with every booking, red or yellow, every goal, every penalty awarded and big injuries. It is so simple that it is embarrising it is not done.

In fieldhockey a yellow card is also at least 5 min on the bench. And I can say that it works. So why not in football. Lastly, give red for a dive in the box with no contact.

it will be strange for one or two years, ans you can always turn the clock back.

Video replay would be the answer to cutting down on reffing mistakes. But I'm firmly against it. What would we have to talk and debate about?

I agree about the automatic red for diving in the box.

I don't agree with the yellow card 'sin bin' type situation. That would be too big a change I think. We want to keep the game to same, just cut down on te amount of diving and play acting.

As long as teams have advantage in taking a yellow card for the common good it will not be banned.

there are more little things worse than taking a dive, or the Figo special. The throw-in with the specialist coming to do it from way across the field, walk in the line of the free kick after it is rewarded to prevent taking, and acting stupid as what free kick, how much distance, act blind when a ball kid trows a ball and you really want to play with the one far away, try to earn a corner at the cornerpost. Just book them with yellow.

it will be a year to remember, with many mistakes and arguing, but we want football to be fair so invest a year or so in trial and error.