Why is football so soft?

When Kevin Morgan walked off the pitch at Murrayfield on Saturday, it didn't look like he would be coming back. He walked gingerly to the touch line, cradling his jaw, but at the same time afraid to touch it. His mouth was stained with dark blood and it hung at a strange angle. Yet ten minutes later there he was, diving at the feet of a 19 stone forward, and bravely trying to assert himself in an already beaten side.

Meanwhile, across Europe, at the same moment, a hundred different footballers are screaming in agony, rolling on the turf after being lightly pushed in the chest, nudged by a shoulder, or tickled playfully under the armpit.

Now Kevin Morgan is not a hard man. He is polite, well-spoken and generally tries to avoid any roughness. But the culture of his sport is such that he returned to the field with a broken jaw because he didn't want to let anybody down.

Later that evening, the multi-millionaire Samuel Eto declined to take the field as a substitute when requested to by his manager Frank Rijkkard. He was tired apparently.

How did it get like this? What happened to football along the way? When did it become acceptable, if not condonable to make a big fuss over a slight knock? It wasn't like that in the until the 1990s was it? I certainly don't remember Phil Dwyer going down unless he had been assaulted with a weapon.

So who wants it to be like it is now? The fans? No, the fans hate it. The media? Well, it can lend a certain controversy and drama to the game. But overwhelmingly, I'm afraid it boils down to coaches and managers.

In days gone by they might have been former schoolmasters, academics, and since the sixties, pulled from the working class - people who generally had some respect for a person's moral fibre. These days they are almost always former players, former cheats.

And FIFA can take a share of the blame. Whilst I fully support the harsh penalties dished out to professional foulers, why has it become a red card offence to "raise your hands"? What is the big deal about giving someone a clip round the ear after he stamped on you, or pushing someone in the chest after he spat in your face?

The more I see of how the two sports are developing, the more I hope that my children take up the oval ball game. Yes it is more dangerous, less popular, and the financial rewards are much smaller. But I think that rugby will make them bettter people. I can't say that about football.

The poor state of armbands

With due respect to the estimable Brian Williams, the Neath prop who died last week, the Welsh rugby team wore black armbands for their match against Scotland. But it wasn't a band really, it was more of a strap.

Armbands used to be at least 4 inches wide, and were made of heavy cotton material. This style lasted for years after being popularised by the trend setting Nazi party and their uberfashionista, Adolf Hitler, or "Bruno" as he was known in Austrian High Fashion Circles.

The Welsh armbands looked like a piece of electrical tape hastily picked up at B&Q in Carlisle, and wrapped around the upper arm. Surely with the current popularity of ostentatious grieving, they could have done a bit better. Brian Williams deserved it.

Ali in the Observer

I've known Ali Yassine a long time now. He was watching Cardiff when it wasn't so easy to be a black face at Ninian. He is a Somalian Welsh speaker who has been prominent in changing the public perception of the Welsh language. He is also an actor who I have worked with professionally, and I've got a lot of respect and no little admiration for the man.

It was a shame then to read a backhanded criticism of my work at Cardiff City before Ali took over in his best known role as stadium announcer at Ninian Park. In an article in the Sunday Observer, Ali states that "previous announcers had no connection with the club." Hmmm, thanks mate.

Now as someone who only did the job for the season or two before Ali started, he probably wasn't thinking about me, but the announcer before me was the legendary Phil Suarez, who sadly died before his time a few years ago. If Phil Suarez had no connection with Cardiff City, then I don't know who does.

Now I know how these things work, and I'm sure Ali's phonecall interview has been butchered. It certainly didn't read like the Ali I know. But let's not get carried away with the cult status. Not everybody likes a showman on the mic. Dinosaurs like me believe that announcers are for announcing so I never worried about "playing the same music every week". For me, it's a football match not a discotheque.

And I don't know what to make of Ali's claim that he was the reason for Wales' first goal against Azerbaijan. Apparently he had got the crowd so worked up that the Azer players were standing dumb as Wales strolled the ball into the net. Please. Come on. You didn't really say that did you Ali? And if you did, you don't really believe it?

Scotland 21-9 Wales

I don't know what to make of this game. Wales were outgunned undoubtedly, but I always thought we were going to win right up until the last 10 minutes. We are obviously a more talented side than the Scots, and I am not faulting our application. I am concerned that there is a much deeper problem than a sluggish attitude.

The props have proved that they can mix it with the top teams, all four of them. Alun Wyn Jones is athletic, and I prefer Gough to Sidoli. The current back row is well balanced and I've got no complaints in that area. The half backs are good enough and.....oh dear what have we here?

This is where it all starts to go wrong with the current team. Hook, Robinson, Czeckai, Jones, Morgan. I just don't think that the boys have enough faith in the three quarters to run the ball wide and to play the fluent game that we've become used to. It was high risk even with Shane Williams, Henson, Shanklin, and Alfie. With this lot it would be disastrous.

The decision not to put Henson on the bench betrays a frightening puerility in the Welsh camp, and in Welsh rugby in general. When Morgan went off with an injury, our back line looked like something that had been thrown together for Mickey Steel-Bodger. With Henson's ability to play almost anywhere, his non-selection can only be based on spite and dare I say it, jealousy.

Welsh people have never liked someone who has things too easy. Henson is a naturally gifted player, and we prefer the braver prole who will put his body on the line. Yes, Henson is out of form, but you can't tell me that Sweeney or Aled Brew are better covering options.

The team in general look like they are not enjoy Gareth Jenkins' tactical game. And while I'm at it, the sooner that we look at Roland Phillips' position the better. I'm afraid that you just can't have a professional pantomime cow running the National side's defence. Something has to give. Either the cross-dressing on S4C, or his job with Wales. I know that the defence was outstanding on Saturday which is why I'm having a pop now. My position isn't reactionary, it's to do with respect and propriety from a WRU official . How can we criticise Alfie's recent behaviour when we appoint a television comedian as coach?

And finally a word about the television coverage. Abysmal.

I knew from the start that it was going to be an irritating afternoon, when the Director chose to mic up 15 nervous rugby players instead of the 30,000 lustily boozed up Welsh travellers for the anthem. From then it got worse. Every line out was filmed from pitch level, which is probably just about the worst seat in the house. The animated advertising boards were a pain in the arse, and none of the repeats managed to capture the crucial part of the replayed incident.
I can only think that the job was being performed by a competition winner. And that it had been won by one of those middle aged women who buy up all the magazines and do all the comps. Including the word puzzles.

It's good to be back.

Blogging's a slog

Thanks to those of you who have written bemoaning the lack of recent updates on this blog. But it's not my fault honest. Ever since Blogger was taken over by Google I've been unable to get into my blog. Still, I've sorted it all out now, and we should be all back regular again. And as we're in the 6 Nations season, and I've been watching a lot of rugby, I've decided to write about that as well. It is rugby "football" after all.

Things you've missed me ranting about:

Henson should be on the bench for Wales.
Cardiff City spelt the word "Caerdydd" wrongly on their socks.
Fair play to Collins for apologising to Tosh.
I booked a day trip to the Dublin game in March.
Porthmadog treated so harshly compared to Newport.
Bleasdale finding it not so easy at Bangor. Don't see him lasting.
We desperately need more playing fields.
I saw a 9 year old crying cos his manager shouted at him so much.
I played in the vets game on Boxing Day.