das libero

World game needs a little respect to win us over
Kevin Naughton

What a pity the Socceroos won their way into the World Cup.

Australia, delightfully free of the nationalistic and ugly fervour associated with the so-called world game, will now ride a wave of enthusiasm which will carry on until we're booted out of the 32-country tournament in July next year.

How sad it was to sit down in an Aussie lounge room and listen to fans at Sydney's Telstra Stadium, dressed in the green and gold, whistle and boo during the Uruguayan national anthem.

Fans justified their reprehensible behaviour by saying the Uruguayans did it to us during our anthem over there.

How typical it is that soccer, the game of hooliganism, riots and murders, should be associated again with such crass behaviour.

In a stunning display of how the game handles such problems, Sepp Blatter, the head of worldwide governing body FIFA, suggested it might be time to do away with anthems at games.

``I am asking myself whether it even makes sense to play the national anthems,'' Blatter said.

He also suggested big games could be played on neutral grounds.
He's right on that score. Play it on the moon - on the dark side, where it belongs.

It also might be better to do away with the concept of one nation taking on another in a game where there's a fair chance no one will score for ages and it comes down to a few pot-shots at the end.

Compare it to rugby union in which Australians rejoice in the sight and sound of a New Zealand haka and the Kiwis stand strong and silent as they respect our national anthem.

Then there's AFL. Despite a hundred thousand fans being in one stadium, there's stunning silence for the Last Post on Anzac Day. During a cricket match at Adelaide Oval, we applaud the batting brilliance of opposing West Indies player Brian Lara.

But no such niceties happen at the soccer, when national hatred is a trademark and respect is reserved for the nearest chair-throwing thug.
Let's be honest here - the Socceroos are a bunch of expatriates mixed in with a few locals who get us excited every four years or so. They rarely play here.
International soccer is not part of the Australian sporting fabric.

How many times has the oddly titled national side played in Adelaide in the last decade - at full strength?

The scourge that is soccer has been kept at bay in Australia because it just doesn't fit into the Aussie attitude.

Its failure to make a mark at local level was because of its ridiculous fascination with old ethnic loyalties which made no sense in the southern hemisphere.

If the team had lost to Uruguay in that penalty shootout, we would have been spared for another four years.

And be fair - winning in a penalty shootout is more about luck than anything else.

Bring on July 2006, when it is all over and we can return to watching sport where national anthems are reserved as a moment of importance, not stupidity.

Sunday Mail (SA)
Edition 1 - State - SUN 27 NOV 2005, Page 060