Managerial Ping-Pong! And where the **** is Tschaempeeonshipe?

Managerial Ping-Pong! By Steven Hebert Why is it that Managers can be sacked and replaced at any time of the year? The acquisition and selling of players is, as we all know, restricted to two windows. This makes perfect sense as it brings certain stability to the season and benefits the players as much as …

The Untold referee index – gameweek two

by Walter Broeckx It all evens itself out at the end of the season is a much used line in football. The same phrase is used if we are talking about having luck or not, about injuries in comparison with our opponents, and off course on bad or good decisions from the refs. Last season …

Arsenal defending corners off and in the field

by Walter Broeckx In the game against Legia Warsaw we saw once again that some teams don’t know the rules at all. Or better said intentionally try to break the rules. Now that is not a big surprise for me as a ref as I have to see the same attempts every week and hear …

The world cup final: being bald does not make you into a good ref

By Walter Broeckx Finally the world cup is over. Time to start looking ahead and think about real football, club football and Arsenal. But just a final word from my point of view on the refs in the world cup. We all have seen the big mistakes some refs made and I am going to …

From good to bad in just a few seconds

By Walter Broeckx Every now and then you have such a game where in a few minutes so many things happen in a game that you can write a whole article on it. Paraguay – Spain was such a match. Before we go to the penalties let’s look at the disallowed goal from Paraguay. A …

Arsenal’s 2010/11 squad – the new rules, the transfers, the list

Welcome to the Untold Intrepretation By Tony Attwood As the transfer guessing game starts (according to my diary tomorrow’s July 1), here’s where we are starting from – the squad for the new season. This season for the first time the “25” year rule applies.  We’ve been through this in detail a number of times …

England – Germany, who is to blame for the not given goal?

by Walter Broeckx I think most of the English media will be starting a crusade against Mauricio Espinosa. Off course he is the one that had to make the decision but let me come to possible other responsibles later on.   Just to clear things it was not a disallowed goal as it was called, it was …

Send all the French home

by Walter Broeckx Despite the urgent plea from the President of the Medical Committee which we have mentioned in an article a few days before the start of the World cup the way most of the referees are doing their games is the opposite from this plea. His plea was to ban all dangerous tackles …

Being a referee: what it’s like, part two

By Walter Broeckx This is part two of the article on being a referee, by Walter.  Part one can be found here. To follow up on what’s it like of being a ref I will start to tell you that being a ref is being the loneliest man on earth at times. This only changes …

Being a ref, what it’s like. Some tips and some advice

Being a ref, what’s it really like.  Some tips and some advice. By Walter Broeckx As a reader recently mentioned that he was going to become a ref this summer I would like to do a little piece on my own experiences and some of my friends that they have gone trough as a ref. …

The case for video evidence – in some cases

Today’s Sponsor: “Making the Arsenal” – just so you can realise what it was like in the really bad times. ———————- by Walter Broeckx Introducing video evidence without delaying the game. As you know I don’t spare my criticism when I see bad referee decisions. I always try to do this by explaining it with the …

Back to the End of the Universe

Today’s Sponsor: Goonernews Betting Guide Back to the End of the Universe Peter Hawkins Like most of you supporters of real football, I was feeling really pissed off by last Sunday tea-time. “Bugger this!” I thought to myself (nobody else was listening), “I’m going out to see if I can tell those who support the …

The quick restart after the foul: what does the ref’s manual say

By Walter Broeckx.  Additional material by Tony Attwood When the referee in the Porto / Arsenal game allowed a quick free kick to be taken there were two reactions. Arsenal players, management and supporters were outraged. And the media, never one to miss an opportunity to knock Arsenal, said, “How many times did we see …

Hull Spitty v Arsenal: predictions, prognosis, possibilities

By Phil Gregory After an awe-inspiring win against Porto, Hull away is next up on the agenda and with it the end of our recent week-long rest periods. I can empathise with the players, I really can: fixture congestion is a blight on the game extending as far down the footballing pyramid as Intramural League …

Tonight’s ref: the inside story, plus the journos prepare their excuses

Tonight the ref is the number one ref in Belgium.   Or as Zafod Bebblebrox says in the Hitchhikers’ Guide “Belgium Man!” Here’s the assessment of our resident Belgian Referee: Walter Broeckx…….. ———— I really hope he doesn’t screw up on us. Last season he had the Liverpool – Real Madrid game and before the game …

Football needs fixing: an open letter to the FA

To the Football Association, from Simon Bailey Sir, I am writing to you as a concerned supporter of both England and of a Premier League football team. The history of football in England is rich and diverse, but at the root of it are the clubs that make up the leagues. Clubs that have existed …

What the rule book says about the Shawcross tackle

By Walter Broeckx Much has been made of Shawcross being a nice man and therefore not to blame.   And behind this has comes the argument that all the fuss is about nothing because what Shawcross did was a legitimate tackle. So let us clear this up for once and for all. At least until the …