Bullwinkle58
Posts: 11302
Joined: 2/24/2009 Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: JohnDillworth quote:
I'm watching the Italy game on Tivo while reading the forum. Number 6 on the SVK team just got his knee laid open like a piece of flank steak. I don't know what video feed Europe got (is it the same cameras in a pool for the whole world?), but ESPN here did a nice, nasty, semi-close up. Yes they did. Saw that on a 50 inch plasma and it looks like it cut deep, right down to the muscle. Grisly, but they only showed it in slow motion once and at the time the context was important. Hard to see how he plays the next game. I know I have spent some time making fun of Italy but I believe that this was the best game so far. Italy was scary good in the last 20 minutes. Also, we have seen some questionable officiating in the cup so far but not today. This was a well called game and he let the players play. He also made it clear that "diving" would not be tolerated. He set the example against the Slovak keeper where he refused to except that he was hurt. The ref was correct because the keeper picked himself up and kicked the ball about 80 yards. I don't think anybody truly believed Italy was dead until that last whistle blew. And even then it took a few seconds This is what all the excitement is about. Play on! The ESPN European and S. African commentators the USA audience hears (I know you know this, but the European forumites may not) have been scathing in their comments on the over-acting, and a bit less so but still critical of the bad calls. I wonder if the other nations' TV facemen have done the same? I agree that this ref was applying tough-love to the whiners. I wonder if FIFA officialdom has put the word out down the chain-of-command that the world is noticing the Oscar-worthy performances, and to tighten it up. Jay Leno has been doing some of the best "hits" in slow-mo on "The Tonight Show", and they are so outlandish it almost isn't funny. (But, it still is.) These fakes take away from the honest players, like #6 today. Of course, Leno's audience is more NASCAR than soccer, so it plays well with them. But still, it was good to see the ref today standing right over a "hurt" player, ordering him to get up and play, and then adding more extra time for his foolishness.
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The Moose
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