Time Wasting

[dannypav]

First of all , this is not a complaint about Morecambes tactics today.
What teams don't waste time away from home when taking the lead ?
We do it and so do everyone else , not just in our League , but the world over.
Even before today it was clear to me , that this aspect of the game is probably the one that irks most fans.
If there was one thing I would change in an otherwise fantastic , and largely honest sport ( certainly in terms of commitment ) it would be the eradication of time wasting.
My view is not just based on games that Southend lose , but also ones we win and also neutral games that I watch on tv.
Ok , for sure if we win I'm less bothered , but nevertheless this part of the game takes away a big part of the enjoyment for me.
I'm sure I'm not alone in how I feel , but what can be done ?
To me there are only 2 options.

1. Stopping and restarting the clock as the do in Rugby ( and I'm guessing some other sports ) ?

2. Ensuring that Refs take stronger action ?

I'm not overly excited by No 1 , but it seems to work in Rugby and fans then get a full compliment of playing time.
I would opt for No 2 , but think this needs a bigger push and directive ( possible law changes ) fron FIFA / EUFA etc rather than just leaving it to the refs themselves.
The refs need to know they have backing , otherwise I can't see how they would be strong enough to stand up to the bigger teams?

Not an easy , overnight fix , but as I say , if it were possible to change one aspect of the game , I would go for this.

thoughts please.

 

[OldBlueLady]

The ref booked one player very early on for time wasting then did nothing more all game to deter Morecambe from those tactics. Definitely one that poor officials let go. I heard PB say on the radio that one free kick by Morecambe took 70 seconds from when the whistle blew - that's awful.

 

[Shrimper]

Once Morecambe knew they wouldn't get booked for it they pushed it as far as possible.

 

[DoDTS]

Dannypav I Totally agree with you.

The trouble is that it is an accepted part of the game and it should NOT.
It wastes my money and it wastes your money.
I want to see end to end entertainment not players killing time.

It should be made very clear to all managers players and referee that it is NOT an accepted part of the game.

I'm sure I will be shot down in flames for this but:

When a player is being subbed and he is suddenly incapable of more than a dawdle while waving to the fans he should be booked, if already booked he is then sent off.
When a player takes the ball into the corner, if the referee thinks it is for wasting time then a free kick should be given to the other side.
If the goalkeeper takes too long with a goal kick, then a corner should be given instead.

Measures such as this would soon stop the time wasting, but this needs to be done at an International as well as Domestic level and of course never will.

The trouble is that for me it is killing the game, we asking people to pay a lot of money, and giving them frustration for their money,

 

[OldBlueLady]

Once Morecambe knew they wouldn't get booked for it they pushed it as far as possible.

As I said a few posts back, they were punished after only about 20 minutes when the #2 was booked for time wasting over a throw in! The ref then failed to punish anyone else despite a stern word to their GK. If he'd have carried through with that early promise then they'd have soon got the message.

 

[Bobby dazzler]

Dannypav I Totally agree with you.

The trouble is that it is an accepted part of the game and it should NOT.
It wastes my money and it wastes your money.
I want to see end to end entertainment not players killing time.

It should be made very clear to all managers players and referee that it is NOT an accepted part of the game.

I'm sure I will be shot down in flames for this but:

When a player is being subbed and he is suddenly incapable of more than a dawdle while waving to the fans he should be booked, if already booked he is then sent off.
I prefer the Knee capping Mafia option

When a player takes the ball into the corner, if the referee thinks it is for wasting time then a free kick should be given to the other side.
Castration

If the goalkeeper takes too long with a goal kick, then a corner should be given instead.
One month in Clink

Measures such as this would soon stop the time wasting, but this needs to be done at an International as well as Domestic level and of course never will.

The trouble is that for me it is killing the game, we asking people to pay a lot of money, and giving them frustration for their money,

Ok so I may have taken the extreme options above but it riles me to spend nigh on 75 minutes watching a team spoil the game I have paid good money to watch. My son hated it so much he wanted to leave early but he has to take his punishment like the rest of us so I made him stay.
From time wasting , to niggly fouls, to falling over to claim a foul, to just sitting on the floor for what appeared no apparent reason I watched a team hit a very good early goal and then set out to spoil the remainder so that it was impossible for the opposition to get any flow or momentum going. Some see this as part of the game but I don't.
The referee was ineffective and how many times our players had their defenders arms wrapped around their necks when jumping I don't know as I lost count, not once did we get a foul though.
All in all a poor game not helped but a lack of fire power on our side and thank heavens for Bentley

 

[Massimo Giovanni]

that type of game is dross and keeps people from returning.
It is supposed to be entertainment for us fans.
For the clubs it is business.
Morecambe came for at least a point and then did what they did by means foul and often outside the rules.
The ref gets paid to ensure the rules are enforced; he largely failed to do this and he thus failed SUFC and 5000+ paying punters AND all of professional football.
He needs to wake up next to a horse head!

 

[eastgreenshrimper]

Dannypav I Totally agree with you.

The trouble is that it is an accepted part of the game and it should NOT.
It wastes my money and it wastes your money.
I want to see end to end entertainment not players killing time.

It should be made very clear to all managers players and referee that it is NOT an accepted part of the game.

I'm sure I will be shot down in flames for this but:

When a player is being subbed and he is suddenly incapable of more than a dawdle while waving to the fans he should be booked, if already booked he is then sent off.
When a player takes the ball into the corner, if the referee thinks it is for wasting time then a free kick should be given to the other side.
If the goalkeeper takes too long with a goal kick, then a corner should be given instead.

Measures such as this would soon stop the time wasting, but this needs to be done at an International as well as Domestic level and of course never will.

The trouble is that for me it is killing the game, we asking people to pay a lot of money, and giving them frustration for their money,

Good suggestions !

I like the idea of when making a substitution the player being replaced has 10 seconds to get off the pitch. If not completed within the 10 second rule you're forced to play with 10 men for 2 minutes!

 

[mrsblue]

The remedy to stop time wasting is simple!

The ref has no say on time so an independent monitor stops his clock every time the ball goes out then use a rugby style hooter for half and full time.

 

[IronMike]

What did concern me was there didn't seem to be one Southend player in the ref's ear hole, harassing him, complaining, pointing out injustices etc.... Sure this can have the reverse effect on other decisions in the game (which obviously shouldn't) but I just feel it was the fans only that got on the ref's back. ...take their booking for no.2 - I noticed how their big lump of a centre half (their captain I think) went straight over to the ref and gesticulated something like, "You only booked him because of that lot there" (referring to the West stand) then pointed over to the 64 away fans as if to say," You won't hear them over that"..... I believe that got in the ref's mind early on.
That's what was needed yesterday... Stronger characters. Players the ref will fear.

 

[IloveShrimp]

Ok my suggestion would be this... introduce sin bins!

I think the refs are worried to send off a player for two bookable offenses for time wasting, but if he could send them off for say 10 mins with the yellow card still standing on the players return then he would do this

Another suggestion that a friend of mine made, was to take the offence of a foul (bad tackle) out of the game completely. His reasoning behind this is, that if a player thought that his foul would be repaid to him two fold then he would not foul in the first place... different concept!

 

[tallboyblue]

I can never understand why a keeper can take a goal kick from either side of the goal irrespective of where the ball goes behind. An opportunity to waste few more seconds.

 

[fbm]

The trouble with stopping the clock is that football is essentially a very fluid game instead of being one that is broken down into specific "plays" like NFL. If the clock stopped in football, where would the incentive be to restart quickly? You'd just have longer gaps when the ball went out of play. Players would have a bit of a rest, the winning team would just delay things anyway because it helps to break up any momentum and you would have to abolish the quick free kick or throw because the game would have to restart once the clock did. It would be torture.

There are things that can be done; for instance, why can the 4th official not manage the substitutions? Why does the game have to stop? The rule was presumably brought in to assist the man in the middle, but these days the game is officiated by a team, so why not use them?

Secondly, how about awarding free kicks for time wasting? Any team, in the ref's opinion, that is time wasting gets one warning, and then it's a booking and an indirect free kick. I think it would soon stop.

 

[fbm]

I can never understand why a keeper can take a goal kick from either side of the goal irrespective of where the ball goes behind. An opportunity to waste few more seconds.

That rule never used to exist and was brought in for a reason. It would be interesting to know what it was as I can't see the point either.

 

[fbm]

Ok my suggestion would be this... introduce sin bins!

I think the refs are worried to send off a player for two bookable offenses for time wasting, but if he could send them off for say 10 mins with the yellow card still standing on the players return then he would do this

Another suggestion that a friend of mine made, was to take the offence of a foul (bad tackle) out of the game completely. His reasoning behind this is, that if a player thought that his foul would be repaid to him two fold then he would not foul in the first place... different concept !

That's just dangerous though. There would be leg breaking tackles all over the shop. Bad idea. I want to see a good game, not a blood fest.

 

[Eddy Melito]

a lot of teams play like that away from home, and they have every right to try it. However its not often that you get the combination of that, the away team going in front early on and a referee so compliant towards it.

 

[Jam_Man]

Whilst everyone wastes time, including us, we dont do it to the extent Morecambe did. They still werent as bad as Burton last year, they still win the trophy.

Every time they headed the ball they went down with a head injury, the only thing to guarantee play is stopped.

The remedy to stop time wasting is simple!

The ref has no say on time so an independent monitor stops his clock every time the ball goes out then use a rugby style hooter for half and full time.

Indeed, if timewasting is that much of an issue then having a stop to time certainly would stop it to an extent. Teams would still do it at times though to disrupt flow of play etc, but not to hte same extent.

Only concern I would have is rather than a 50 minute half you ended up with a 60 minute half.

 

[Norwichshrimper]

Time wasting is just one aspect of cheating that spoils our once beautiful game....What frustrates me is that it would be so easy for the FA/FIFA/ whoever to eradicate it..they just do not seem to have the balls to do it. If match officials were given licence to punish the offences and did so consistently players would not do it....I mean footballers are generally pretty thick, but if they knew they would get a card for delaying a set piece or wellying the ball into the tea hut and shouting "our ball ref" they wouldn't do it would they.
I very rarely watch a Premiershite game as it frustrates me so much...but you essentially have 22 players trying to con the referee for 90 minutes, then the manager comes on and starts criticising the ref.. Well if you're bunch of overpaid nancy boys didn't spend the whole game cheating then it would be a lot easier for the ref wouldn't it! And this ripples down through the leagues and young kids learning the game see it as part of the game...Stamp it out at the highest levels and then the rest will follow.

 

[sufc_dave]

I hate the way time wasting has crept into the game. I can understand a team time wasting and going to the corner nearer the end of a game, it is frustrating for the losing team but that is just part and parcel of football. What really bugged me yesterday was that Morecambe showed glimpses of a good footballing team yet for large parts of the game they were rolling around on the floor and time wasting. To be booked in the 25 min for time wasting is absolutely ridiculous. They knew what they were doing and most of their players were laughing to one another when they were winning free-kicks etc.

 

[Norwichshrimper]

and I have an idea too.

If a player needs the game to be stopped for an injury (to bring a physio on). He has to wait 5 minutes before he's allowed back on the field again. If you need treatment then go off the pitch for it, don't delay the game. Only bring the physio on if you cannot get off the pitch....yes you will get the odd genuinely injured player having to be sacrificed for 5 minutes now and again, but it would stamo out the time-wasting by feigning injury.

I know loads of players do it...but their no.12 yesterday must surely be embarrassed by his actions yesterday?