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lake district canary

Refs, linesmem - and just get on with it

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One of the best managers of all time was Brian Clough.   His teams were based on players being 100% honest and 100% focused on football and took away the "ego" out of football.   If you look at football these days, there are very few teams, if any, that follow these principles.    I don''t really care about what other teams do as if there were more "honest" clubs out there, it would make it harder for us.   

I look at our players and I see Holt and Snodgrass and others to a lesser extent showing a lack of  honesty and focus.  Now both players are  strong characters, but the lack of focus is alarming at times.   Honesty combined with focus means playing football without  any  thought of  trying it on, attempting to con a ref, attempting to get penalties, fouling, arguing with officials and anything that gets in the way of playing the real game - and just focusing on the football.

Take that penalty incident last week.    If Snodgrass had just accepted the decision for the corner without  abusing the linesman and throwing his toys out of the pram, would that penalty have been given?     Its an impossible question, but deep down, who''s to say that the constant berating of officials doesn''t sometimes have an effect on their decisions.      If Kamara hadn''t got hold of the player''s shirt it wouldn''t have been a penalty.  Just cut out the negative stuff and play the football.  If other teams want to carry on diving, cheating, shirt pulling, berating officials etc - let them.  

If a team ethic is in place that involves just focusing on the football and forgetting all the little things that go wrong in a game, then the energy is channelled  in a more positive and focused way.  Officials will know that the team in question is playing the game with honesty, they know they will not be abused by them, they know they can by and large trust that team that they are not going to make life difficult for them - and as a consequence would by the nature of things get a better class of decision making by the refs.    If all teams did this (it would never happen) then officials would have a much easier time. 

This is a by product of being honest because the main benefits of this approach is in the quality of the football.   Energy channelled in a completely positive way like this is much stronger, collectively, in a  team situation.  Clough was able to inspire his players to be focused and honest - and not let little things get in the way of playing the game.      Decisions are never reversed, or hardly ever reversed, because players complain.  Complaining is a waste of energy in football.  Trying to get fouls is a waste of  time too - you only get the occasional dive sufficiently good  to get the free kick -most of the time it''s embarrassing to watch your burly strong players falling over all the time.  Just get on with it and focus. 

Honesty and positivity are lacking these days, but if a manager could ever be strong enough to instill this kind of honest and focused approach, it would be revolutionary - just as Clough was in his day.   O''Neill, I believe understood this - and Lambert, from the same school of management takes some aspects of it in his style of management.   But no-one has tried to completely do what Clough did.  He was a one off, I know,  but that doesn''t mean it couldn''t be done. 

One of the keys to it is to keep a manager in place long enough to build a system of  ethics that will be consistent and stand the test of time.  Moyes, Ferguson and Wenger show how it can be done. We had all hoped Lambert was that man.    Moyes perhaps is the best example as he hasn''t had the money the other teams have.  Hughton is that man for Norwich and I hope he is allowed to stay long enough to build a dynasty based on  good principles.   

I''ve gone off on one again I know, but as far as my original point goes, doesn''t attitude to officials have to change?  If players make their life easier,  then the quality of decisions would surely improve.  

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Totally agree,does anybody really believe an official starts with the intention of helping one side prosper, but they are only human and could be influenced by poor attitudes towards them during the game

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The officials are paid extremely well these days they should be unbiased, if Snodgrass mouthed off to the official then they have the right to caution him if however he thought he was fouled or that it wasnt a corner then what just accept it and let the officials make whatever decisions they want.

We saw last night an official who was so inconsistent that it was unbelievable. We saw at Arsenal officials who were wrong we saw at Sunderland officials who were wrong what do we do just accept it. It would help if those in charge of referees would come out occassionally and say we got it wrong but there is so much secrecy that it makes you mad.

If you want honesty then it comes from both sides personally I am sick and tired of officials who think they are bigger than the game, over the years I have always had respect for certain officials but now there isn''t one referee that I have time for.

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On the other hand, you want to see your players fighting for what is honest and showing the passion, it wasn''t a corner...

Player''s careers are on the line and I know you have 37 other games to earn your points but its still technically points lost due to bad officialling.

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[quote user="Marmaduke"]It just winds you up so much more when you''re actually at the game ...[/quote]This.

Normally I think "come on lads just get on with it, you wont change his mind" but then in the latter stages of the season it starts to grate a little bit.

Saturday was painful. Bloody Richard West *shakes fist*

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[quote user="Nuff Said"]I can''t really disagree with the spirit of what you say LDC, but in my head this is your version of the game:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4CXY6TVBMc[/quote]

Its true its an old fashioned idea,  but in so many areas of life, but the argument I have is more based on what would be good for the football our team plays.   Its not old fashioned to want to be "focused" - but in what I see, the players are anything but focused when they shout at refs and linesmen and getting worked up about decisions.    They have "lost it" - whether its for ten seconds or 10 minutes, they have lost their focus on what they should be thinking about - getting the ball in the back of the net.   You cannot be focused on a task when you are angry or upset about something else. 

I don''t think its a complicated idea and one that a strong manager could implement.    I believe the positive benefits of this approach outweigh  the negative ones - and if you can remember back to Brian Clough, he got his players to play with total focus - Kenny Burns was a different player under Clough, why?  Because Clough got rid of all the negative stuff from his game.    

"Focus" is a buzz word these days and is not an old fashioned idea,  its just that a lot of footballers don''t do it enough.     

If I spend my hard earned

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[quote user="Nuff Said"]I can''t really disagree with the spirit of what you say LDC, but in my head this is your version of the game:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4CXY6TVBMc[/quote]

Its true its an old fashioned idea,  but the argument I have is more based on what would be good for the football our team plays.   Its not old fashioned to want to be "focused" - but in what I see, the players are anything but focused when they shout at refs and linesmen and getting worked up about decisions.    They have "lost it" - whether its for ten seconds or 10 minutes, they have lost their focus on what they should be thinking about - getting the ball in the back of the net.   You cannot be focused on a task when you are angry or upset about something else. 

I don''t think its a complicated idea and one that a strong manager could implement.    I believe the positive benefits of this approach outweigh  the negative ones - and if you can remember back to Brian Clough, he got his players to play with total focus - Kenny Burns was a different player under Clough, why?  Because Clough got rid of all the negative stuff from his game.    

"Focus" is a buzz word these days and is not an old fashioned idea,  its just that a lot of footballers don''t do it enough.     

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Everyone accepts it when a player makes a mistake. Everyone accepts iy if a manager makes a mistake.Why does no-one accept it when a referee or linesman make a mistake? The double standards is laughable

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