The Official 2010 Football & World Cup Thread

johnobvious wrote: Should they replay the France-Ireland match?  Discuss among yourselves. This handball will live on forever in Ireland and if France were to win the whole thing, you can imagine the outcry.  But if they replay it, they would be opening a Pandora's box for the future.  Every seemingly wronged side will be screaming for a replay.  It would not be pretty.

To replay the match??? Please, no!
Last night, I had to bear the Algerian supporters AND the French supporters while I was trying to sleep! Not another evening of soccer!

Just chop off the hand of TH to give him a good lesson.

First was Mexico, then Argentina and now France... it's always like that...

Thierry Henry should play basket-ball with his friend Tony Parker. Then France would win many titles. 

Atkingani wrote: johnobvious wrote: Should they replay the France-Ireland match?  Discuss among yourselves. This handball will live on forever in Ireland and if France were to win the whole thing, you can imagine the outcry.  But if they replay it, they would be opening a Pandora's box for the future.  Every seemingly wronged side will be screaming for a replay.  It would not be pretty.   They should play only the overtime... if a new game starts from scratch with 0-0 then France will be favored yet.   BTW, last Sunday in a game here Brazilian Championship, 1st Division, the referee consulted discreetly the 3rd linesman to check if a goal was legal or illegal. The 3rd linesman had the information via TV that the goal was illegal and so the referee deleted the goal and even the players seemed apparently satisfied. Is it a possibility for the future? The 3rd linesman with a TV monitor and being consulted for controversial actions?

Just play the overtime, heh? Good answer, I like it.

harmonium.ro wrote: Besides the handball, at the start of that phase there was also a French player in offside. It's starting to actually look like a proper conspiration.

Although I can understand this view from an emotional standpoint, it does tread on rather dangerous territory methinks. If it were a result engineered by FIFA for their own grubby ends, wouldn't a penalty have been awarded for Anelka's dive in the box when Given came out to block him ?

Replaying the match would be the moral thing to do, but FIFA have rejected the Irish FA's request for this to happen as they know full well that such a precedent would lead to a caterwaul of protests from those countries who have been denied glory on the strength of similar bad refereeing decisions in the past.

Ivan_Melgar_M wrote: ExittheLemming wrote: Replaying the match would be the moral thing to do, but FIFA have rejected the Irish FA's request for this to happen as they know full well that such a precedent would lead to a caterwaul of protests from those countries who have been denied glory on the strength of similar bad refereeing decisions in the past.   There's a preceedent.   In 2005 a game between Bahrein and Uzbekistan was declared not valid because referee mistake, they played again.   So Ireland has a very strong case.   Iván

Good post Ivan (I had forgotten about this controversial match) However there is perhaps one crucial difference between the two scenarios:

Uzbekistan were leading 1-0 when they were awarded a legitimate penalty kick. Before the kick was taken however, another Uzbek player entered into the penalty box. The kicker converted the penalty kick successfully to score. The ref was aware of the encroachment and disallowed the goal accordingly but then awarded an indirect fee-kick to Bahrain. He should , according to the laws have had the penalty retaken. The match was deemed replayable by FIFA because of a technical error by the ref. There was no such technical error in the France v Ireland match. (He simply failed to see the hand-ball infringement)

I would love to see the France v Ireland match replayed, but don't think it likely.

valravennz wrote: I, for the life of me, cannot see why this match cannot be replayed.!! FIFA are asses letting that hand-ball be ignored to the detriment of the Irish team. Shame on FIFA! It's about time it moved into the 21st Century and added a video ref to major games, as is now common in many other sporting codes. Also the excuse that it will up set the playing schedule and set a precedent for future games, just does not wash!!!

Because you set a prescedent. Can't be done. Ireland should have converted earlier chances and the ref's decision sticks. Life goes on, France are in South Africa ROI are not. Stats are amde up over a series of games and the Irish missed out. I appreciate Roy Keanes sentiments, move on Ireland you had your chances- GOOD LUcK FRANCE

I'm gonna boycott the World Cup. Who's with me?

Yes. And because Polish team doesn't play.