Football and the race rows

I don't know about other people but I am becoming a little alarmed that Luis Suarez is handed am eight-match ban for racially abusing Patrice Evra when the only evidence that appears to have been prersented is from Evra himself! Now I'm not questioning Evra's account but am questioning the fact that he apparently abused Suarez (in his own language and by his own admission) such that it elicited the response for which he (Suarez) has been punished!

It seems to me that both players need to be facing bans for their behaviour and the FA, whilst trying to make a grand gesture are on the road to making yet another spectacle of themselves. Mind you, if the Crown Prosecution Service are successful in their forthcoming court appearances with Chelsea and England Captain John Terry, also on racist comment charges, I can only assume he will lose his place in the England squad and face an even lengthier ban. Ironic when you consider that the English FA went and appealed against Rooney's ban (for a blatant and ridiculously typical'rooneyesque' foul which merited the punishment given) because it was in their interests. But what about the interests of fair play and integrity? No even a hint of such things :(

Seems racism is not OK (which is the right position to take) but cheating and behaving contrary to the laws of the game is. Double-standards or what?

Yes indeed - a game of overpaid, loose-moraled, prima donnas with even more dodgy types gracing the governing bodies (or was FIFa just a blip) who set duplistic standards and somehow still manage to fall short of them.

Still, the good news is that it will help to rekindle the almost maniacal hatred between the two teams involved which has to be good for the next meeting of the two (if you like to see police officers kept busy that is).

we need to be robust about dealing with bad behaviour, all bad behaviour, not just that which suits us or benefits us at the expense of integrity.

Pax