Thursday 31 July 2014

Vanishing spray next season BUT not in the FL

There was a lot to like in the World Cup much to my surprise being not a fan of international football as a rule.

I liked most of the football, crowds, fans and the BBC coverage but something that made me full of joy was the humble vanishing spray. Yes, I was that easily pleased by a spray can. After years of hitting boiling point watching walls at free kicks and players encroach now there was away for me to stay calm.

I have been known to suggest referees should be issued with a nail gun to nail the players in the wall to the ground. Not to stop them jumping just to stop then darting towards the ball before the ball has been kicked.

Therefore, I was pleased to hear the vanishing spray that stops players in free-kick walls trying to stand inside the permitted 10 yards is coming to the Premier League. Has a by-product of the new innervation it will help stop players rolling the ball forward. However, it is not coming to the Football League just yet, which is astonishing.

Chief executive Richard Scudamore of the Premier League said: “At the Premier League, we are open to developments that enhance the competition and it was clear from watching the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil that vanishing spray benefitted referees, players, and all of those who watched the matches.
“Having witnessed that, and following consultation with our clubs and the PGMOL, we have decided to introduce it in the Barclays Premier League and look forward to having it in place for the 2014/15 season.”

In the Football League, it’s only under consideration but will be trialled in the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy. What a joke! Maybe they didn’t watch the World Cup or listen to the media pundits gushingly praising on about how helpful it would be in British football.

Football League chief executive Shaun Harvey said: “The introduction of vanishing spray into the Johnstone's Paint Trophy will give us the opportunity to observe its use in domestic football, so that we can better understand its effect on the flow of the game.”

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