Horror Tackles

Earlier this week we had a phantom goal - the goal that didn't exist. Now we have a 25-year old defender-come-captain breaking young children's legs. I say children, I actually mean someone older than me and with ten-times the amount of skill that I have.

Still, 19 year-old Possebon was hacked down by Pogatetz in the Carling Cup last night, and what a tackle. It was a tackle which left fans of all teams utterly astounded and Alex Ferguson - sorry, I mean 'Sir' Alex Ferguson fuming. Not only that, but everyone in the stadium but the Middlesborough bench seemed to think that a straight red was deserving. I did, too. Watch the tackle here.

This leads me to my point - horror tackles, such as M. Turner's hackle on Eduardo should have serious bans. The current rule of a 3-match game ban (in the FA Rules&Regulations) is ridiculous if you break another man's leg in a careless tackle. Why should the player only serve a 3-match game ban, when the injured player is made to endure months of pain and may not return to their chosen career in football? Mental.

Of course, then the FA would have to think up extra rules and regulations for exceptional tackles - and then there's the arguement of when does a tackle become an exceptional tackle? Where's the line, just so we know when to cross? Complications of football need psychologists to figure out what to do, they can think up some crazy stuff.

This, then, means that the rule will probably never come into place, due to the fact that there will always be horror tackles and there will never be that invisible line to cross due to exceptional tackles. This has been a week of ghosts and ghoulies in football. Horror tackles and phantom goals extraordinare.

Update: Good news for the youngstar. He hasn't broken his leg. Still, it doesn't mean Pogaterets (geddit?) should feel any better. It was a terrible hackle.

Please note, by exceptional I mean tackles which are more than a bad tackle, more of a horror tackle. :)