Football – Page 4

As certain teammates of footballer Gary Neville make headlines for their off the pitch activities, not limited to failed super injunctions and hookups with prostitutes, Neville is currently in the spotlight (and worthy of it) for some of the good he’s done and for his imminent retirement from professional football.

Neville, who has the most caps for a right back for the England squad, and who was captain of Manchester United’s captain for five years, played his last match tonight at Old Trafford. His testimonial match versus Juventus saw the reunion of other footballing legends, like David Beckham and Peter Schmeichel, to play alongside Neville in his final game.

Apart from his football skills and sport legacy, Neville deserves kudos for his green credentials. Yes, he’s quite environmentally sound. Not so long ago he was granted planning permission for building an eco-bunker. And for his testimonial match tonight, he insisted that the entire match – from the floodlights to the energy used for boiling water for tea – come from wind energy. It was one of the first ever football matches powered by wind energy. Also, something that deserves a mention is the fact that some of the £2 million raised tonight will be donated to charity. Good stuff Gary, way to be an actual role model.

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This is the 21st Century, Right?

On Saturday I was watching the Liverpool v. Wolverhampton match and to my delight I saw that there was a woman running the lines.

It is very uncommon and rarely happens that you’ll see a female official in a premier league match. In fact, Sian Massey is the second woman official in the premier league – ever! But of course, let the sexism ensue. During the match, Sky Sports commentators actually questioned her ability as a linesperson referring to her knowledge of the offside rule and then continued to question the presence of a woman as an assistant referee. The 25 year old lineswoman had been promoted to the premier league this season, this being her second appearance officiating a match, clearly based on ability, and needless to say she obviously knows the offside rule. You can see that she knows the offside rule when she deems this run made by Meireles on side. That call would have been a close call for anyone to make, male or female. But the bottom line is, she got it right.

If you’d like to see what the sky commentators Andy Gray and Richard Keys actually said, check it out as reported by the Guardian. Seriously not cool.

(This little rant is very much related to something I wrote about here on the State of Women’s Football)