Fifa needs to act as cheats prosper

OPINION: Fifa likes to think it's at the forefront of world sport but it's a laggard at rooting out gamesmanship and cheating.

World football's governing body would do well to heed All Whites captain Ryan Nelsen's plea to introduce a system to punish players guilty of "faking and conning" referees.

Nelsen was livid Italy midfielder Daniele De Rossi took a dive to earn a penalty in their 1-1 draw on Monday. He spoke out strongly, saying Guatemalan referee Carlos Batres had "stars in his eyes" and swallowed the Italians' theatrics.

Nelsen called for Fifa to introduce some form of post-match scrutiny akin to rugby union's citings system.

To its credit, Fifa hasn't put Nelsen on the mat – yet – for his stinging comments. But let's hope it does not ignore his message.

Cheating is a blight on professional football. It's turning floating fans off the so-called beautiful game.

Punters want to see the skills and flair produced by Portugal and Spain yesterday – not actors writhing in pretend pain at the slightest physical contact.

Diving and shirt-pulling are sickening enough, but it's an affront to see players pleading with referees to have opponents sent off for innocuous and, in some cases, non-existent challenges.

Few referees have the courage to stand up to the sport's prima donnas and hand out cautions for cheating and simulation.

At least Chile striker Jorge Valdivia copped his yellow card sweet yesterday when he hurled himself to the ground in the Switzerland penalty area like a wounded wildebeest.

It's hard for referees and assistants to spot such skulduggery because the game at this level is so quick. So they need help.

Rugby got it right with its citings commissioner procedure. An independent observer with extensive rugby or legal experience pores over videotapes after each game and cites offenders for incidents undetected by the match officials.

On that score, De Rossi and Tommy Smith would have been cited in Nelspruit on Monday for tugging each other's shirts. De Rossi would have faced a further charge of diving to dupe the referee into awarding a penalty – which occurred some moments after Smith let go of his shirt.

The Ivory Coast cheat complicit in Brazilian star Kaka's ludicrous banishment should also be on the mat for conning the referee into a red card and depriving the public of one of the stars of the tournament.

Citings commissioners could refer offenders to judicial panels, which would have the power to assess evidence and impose penalties. It works well in rugby and league where some sanctions are severe.

Retrospective yellow and red cards could be issued on a sliding scale, according to the severity of the offences. De Rossi and Smith would have got yellow for the shirt-tugging and De Rossi would have earned red for cheating.

A two-strikes-and-you're-out policy would root out recidivists who could be banned from the tournament.

It wouldn't change the outcome of an injustice – results would have to stand. But it would stop repeat offenders getting away scot-free and make them face the consequences of their actions.

While we're at it, what about some tough action on another pet peeve – the persistent encroachment of defensive walls inside the 10m distance at freekicks. It happens all the time. Why can't referees issue one warning, then book every player in the wall?

Cheating is now so widespread that players seem to accept it as standard practice. A former English premiership player and ex-international captain at Nelspruit on Monday agreed De Rossi dived against the All Whites but he credited the Italian for clever play.

Still, there is sporting karma. Is it pure coincidence that France have struggled in South Africa after the controversy over Thierry Henry handling the ball before their winning goal in the playoff against Ireland?

If there's any justice in the football world, De Rossi's Italy will slip up against Slovakia on Friday and the All Whites will advance to the second round with Paraguay.

Perhaps Nelsen could have a post-retirement role as a Fifa World Cup citings commissioner.

- © Fairfax NZ News