Don’t know about you lot but am sick and tired of this play acting that as crept into this league every time a team is under pressure the player drops to the floor clutching their head refs have got to wise up to it quickly

I think it's all part of smaller teams game plan to disrupt the flow of the game . It comes from the Manager and you're right it's pathetic and needs clamping down on . The refs are very weak in this league though

It would end instantly if there was an NFL type protocol for head injuries where players have to go back to the changing room and be passed fit by an independent doctor.

Game management I think they call it, Everton were at it when they went 1-0 up against Chelsea this afternoon.

It's ruining the game, people pay good money to watch this sh!te.

Quoted from GollyGTFC

It would end instantly if there was an NFL type protocol for head injuries where players have to go back to the changing room and be passed fit by an independent doctor.

A very good idea.

This sort of stuff is really starting to turn me off football. Just generally being a nuisance to superior opposition might be within the rules but it’s really, really boring for the game in general.

But then people will go down clutching their neck so the ref thinks it's a head injury from afar.

Anyone who requires the physio should go off for a minimum of 5 minutes unless the opposing player gets booked. That should hopefully make people think twice about "tactical injuries."

Quoted from GollyGTFC

It would end instantly if there was an NFL type protocol for head injuries where players have to go back to the changing room and be passed fit by an independent doctor.

This!

When we’re 1-0 up in the play off final with 30 seconds to go I hope to Christ Waterfall goes down and holds his head regardless of whether he’s injured or not…

Quoted from aldi_01

When we’re 1-0 up in the play off final with 30 seconds to go I hope to Christ Waterfall goes down and holds his head regardless of whether he’s injured or not…

Well yeah but that is very different to doing it from minute one isn’t it? Fail gloriously IMO.

Quoted from aldi_01

When we’re 1-0 up in the play off final with 30 seconds to go I hope to Christ Waterfall goes down and holds his head regardless of whether he’s injured or not…

Don’t worry, if we’re 1-0 up in the playoff final with 30 seconds to go, you won’t have to wait for Luke Waterfall to playact… I’ll go rolling on from the sidelines clutching my head and screaming in agony!

If time control was done properly and the clock was visibly stopped when play was stopped it would deal with a lot of the problems of abuse of time. Football is so slow to change sometimes, having the referee still expected to keep track of how much time has been accrued. They frequently get it wrong and just pluck the first figure that comes to mind I suspect.

Quoted from GrimRob

If time control was done properly and the clock was visibly stopped when play was stopped it would deal with a lot of the problems of abuse of time. Football is so slow to change sometimes, having the referee still expected to keep track of how much time has been accrued. They frequently get it wrong and just pluck the first figure that comes to mind I suspect.

Exactly this. I went to a rugby match this weekend and the clock stops when there's no play, it keeps things simple and no one has to calculate anything.

I just don’t see the issue to be honest. It gets on some peoples nerves yet literally every team is guilty of it…

If we’re looking to change things in football there are far bigger things to focus on…

Quoted from aldi_01

If we’re looking to change things in football there are far bigger things to focus on…

Very true but we can focus on more than one thing at a time.

Quoted from Plankton

Very true but we can focus on more than one thing at a time.

We can but worrying about who records the time is low on the priority list…

The focus on the effects and lasting damage caused by head injuries, heading the ball etc is serious…worrying that people go down and feign injury in a game where winning has become more than just 3 points and pride is not…

Quoted from aldi_01

We can but worrying about who records the time is low on the priority list…

The focus on the effects and lasting damage caused by head injuries, heading the ball etc is serious…worrying that people go down and feign injury in a game where winning has become more than just 3 points and pride is not…

In 10 or 20 years time, will heading be allowed? I believe it's no longer coached in kids football (certainly isn't in the earlier years) and there are limits on how much heading adults can do during training which, you would expect, will make heading ability much worse over time.

Understand the reasons behind it but I wonder how damaging a correct header is compared to a misjudged one too.

Quoted from crusty ole pie

Don’t know about you lot but am sick and tired of this play acting that as crept into this league every time a team is under pressure the player drops to the floor clutching their head refs have got to wise up to it quickly

Cheltenham are the worst I've seen at BP over the last few seasons by a country mile, shocking.

Either...
A.   Make any player with  a head "injury" leave the field to be assessed properly by an independant consultant

B. Use the VAR footage retrospectively and fine/suspend any player clearly feigning injury. That can be either were there is clearly no contact made or the old "three limps and I am cured" contact scenarios.

Quoted from GrimRob

If time control was done properly and the clock was visibly stopped when play was stopped it would deal with a lot of the problems of abuse of time. Football is so slow to change sometimes, having the referee still expected to keep track of how much time has been accrued. They frequently get it wrong and just pluck the first figure that comes to mind I suspect.

Time control is already being done properly. The Ref has two watches, one continues through, the other is stopped for injuries and such. When people think teams score in the 94th minute when 5 minutes have been allowed for stoppages they are wrong as the Referees watch which gets stopped will only read 89 minutes! As for saying  “they frequently getting it wrong” give your head a wobble.😉 8)

Pitch-side brain scans aim to make sports safer https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-61269585

This maybe the way to stop the time wasting,only in the early stages apparently but if a player falls holds his head than off he goes for a scan brilliant idea

There's another issue here beyond reducing the wasting of time.  

If you introduce things like assessments and scans during the game, you'll have some players who will simply ignore the head injury to start with. They'll want to carry on and not leave their team short, that's unacceptable and will increase the risk factor tenfold.  

My view is very much in support of the time control aspect.  The amount of time the ball is in play is reducing all the time and quite frankly we're getting ripped off.   Player safety shouldn't be compromised and their always needs to be a requirement for players to receive treatment, but at present the safety net of that is getting abused to run down the clock.

I get the traditionalist argument but would you rather stick with 90 minutes and spend nearly half the game watching players try to kill time or know you're going home having seen 60 minutes of actual football?    

Quoted from diehardmariner

I get the traditionalist argument but would you rather stick with 90 minutes and spend nearly half the game watching players try to kill time or know you're going home having seen 60 minutes of actual football?    

Why should I pay for 90 minutes and only get to see an hour? Stoppage time should be more accurate. Maybe put the fourth official in charge of time keeping.

I still think a third of the game being stoppages isn't good enough.

I don't disagree, Rugby is 40 minutes in-play time a half and I think football should follow the same pattern personally.  

Just basing 60 minutes on the arguments I've seen have been of 30 minute halves.

In the East Lincs Combination a number of years ago, a newly qualified referee taking his first game stopped his watch every time the ball was not ”in play”. They kicked off at 2 pm, and were still playing at dusk!

Often players are feigning head injuries to quell the immediate pressure their team is under, rather than specifically waste time. Loads of times a corner comes in, it gets cleared to the edge of the box, but the goalie or defender goes down clutching their head, so that the attack is stopped in its tracks. So whilst I'm in favour of stopping the clock, I still think players would try it on in scenarios such as this.

Quoted from Roast Em Bobby

Often players are feigning head injuries to quell the immediate pressure their team is under, rather than specifically waste time. Loads of times a corner comes in, it gets cleared to the edge of the box, but the goalie or defender goes down clutching their head, so that the attack is stopped in its tracks. So whilst I'm in favour of stopping the clock, I still think players would try it on in scenarios such as this.

Yeah exactly this. Unfortunately this 'safety' measure is already abused. Its not one that town seem to do but you do see it from some oppo teams. I would be I  favour of scrapping it as players can't be trusted, unsurprisingly, to not abuse it. But failing that, when it happens the drop ball should return to the team in possession at the point they had it, so the attack can continue OR the player involved leaves the field for an assessment as mentioned above. That would help greatly.

You can tell its abused because how often do you see these teams doing it when they are attacking  - I can tell you it's never. So unfortunately this safety measure can't be left as it is because teams use it to cheat.

One reason the authorities don’t care about time wasting is because the tv companies, basically the ones who pay all the money, want to be able to schedule programs, it’s no good if a game goes on for an additional 30 minutes to ensure 90 minutes of actual game time is played if it means the following programs are all pushed back.

Quoted from joe56

In the East Lincs Combination a number of years ago, a newly qualified referee taking his first game stopped his watch every time the ball was not ”in play”. They kicked off at 2 pm, and were still playing at dusk!

I think the answer is to just do it for major stoppages I.e. injuries,  goal celebrations, substitutions. Not every time it goes out for a throw or goal kick

The other thing footy could learn from rugby is allowing the physio on while the game continues. They'll be much less likely to cheat if their team has to continue a man short

Is the going down to quell the pressure cheating or just clever? I’d argue the latter. I want to win. If that helps a team win then crack on…the game has changed.

It isn’t rugby nor should we look to rugby to progress. I stand by the fact that I’m truth this is a discussion point that has merit and value but there are much much bigger things that need to change in football first.

Quoted from aldi_01

Is the going down to quell the pressure cheating or just clever? I’d argue the latter. I want to win. If that helps a team win then crack on…the game has changed.

It isn’t rugby nor should we look to rugby to progress. I stand by the fact that I’m truth this is a discussion point that has merit and value but there are much much bigger things that need to change in football first.

Not sure I agree, not in terms of the actual playing of the game.  Time wasting is up there with play-acting as the biggest threat to the entertainment of the sport.  

Yes, I get your point about the desire to win and no-one minds a bit of shithousery, But when it is downright spoiling the game then action needs taking asap, surely?

Not so much head injuries but tonight's City vs Madrid game, Madrid took the time wasting to ridiculous levels and it worked: only 3 mins added time given when it should have been a lot more, and the ref blew early at that. Needs to be sorted out ASAP.

This is why I don't watch any football on TV (except if Town are playing), I used to be an avid football watcher, would never miss a MOTD or Football Focus etc.  These diving diva's and timewasteing idiots are totally ruining the game.  

Quoted from 123614

This is why I don't watch any football on TV (except if Town are playing), I used to be an avid football watcher, would never miss a MOTD or Football Focus etc.  These diving diva's and timewasteing idiots are totally ruining the game.  

You’re not a football fan then

Quoted from supertown

You’re not a football fan then

I would say its because he is a football fan 8)

Quoted from jamesgtfc

But then people will go down clutching their neck so the ref thinks it's a head injury from afar.

Anyone who requires the physio should go off for a minimum of 5 minutes unless the opposing player gets booked. That should hopefully make people think twice about "tactical injuries."

I suggested this on this site 3 years ago and got "shot down in flames" by several posters. I think it is a brilliant way of curbing the sham tactics employed by some players and teams. A compulsory 5 minutes off-pitch assessment unless the injury is the result of a foul.

Quoted from aldi_01

Is the going down to quell the pressure cheating or just clever? I’d argue the latter. I want to win. If that helps a team win then crack on…the game has changed.

It isn’t rugby nor should we look to rugby to progress. I stand by the fact that I’m truth this is a discussion point that has merit and value but there are much much bigger things that need to change in football first.

So cheating is clever!

I find it as frustrating as anyone, so many teams have come to BP and consistently tried it on to try and break down attacks and run the clock down this season. Even Boreham Wood and Barnet at home have been equally disgraceful in their antics, both sides played at home and came for a point and got one.

However, when it's 1-0 in 78th minute to us at the London Stadium in June, I'd be favour of bringing Macca on just to wheel out his extensive repertoire of not-so-subtle time-wasting techniques!

Quoted from Mariner_09

I find it as frustrating as anyone, so many teams have come to BP and consistently tried it on to try and break down attacks and run the clock down this season. Even Boreham Wood and Barnet at home have been equally disgraceful in their antics, both sides played at home and came for a point and got one.

However, when it's 1-0 in 78th minute to us at the London Stadium in June, I'd be favour of bringing Macca on just to wheel out his extensive repertoire of not-so-subtle time-wasting techniques!

But time wasting can be penalised, so that is a risk you take. Feigning injury is very difficult to quantify so refs will always err on the side if cautiin. A compulsory 5 minute assessment off pitch will soon sort out the genuine injuries from the cheats.

Quoted from supertown

You’re not a football fan then

Ridiculous statement!  I've been a football fan since I was 5 years old, just because I don't watch it on TV any more, changes nothing.