Do we punish every piece of careless driving?

The most frequent analogy that has been used following Ryan Shawcross’ poor challenge on Saturday is that of the reckless driver. Does the man who drives everyday at 5mph above the speed limit intend to go out to kill someone? Of course he doesn’t but, if one day that extra speed meant he killed, he would be punished for it, despite not doing anything differently and not intending to end a person’s life.

We have inevitably been told that Shawcross is not the kind of player that would deliberately go out to harm another player. However, the way that he plays will inevitably mean that he will cause injuries as he goes into every tackle with all his strength and is clumsy. There have also been instances in the past where he has caused injury. Last season he followed through on Adebayor while he was off the pitch, keeping our former striker out of action for a couple of weeks and three years ago he broke the ankle of ex-Arsenal striker, Francis Jeffers.

The tackle on Ramsey was not the worst you will see but it was bad and was the perfect opportunity for the FA to make an example, rather than just handing out the standard three match ban. UEFA jumped at the chance to make an example of the Eduardo diving incident earlier in the season, despite worst offences happening every week. Poor tackles are a much more important issue than diving and yet the governing bodies and the majority of the media find it very easy to excuse and ignore tackles like Shawcross’.

Shawcross is obviously not a malicious man but there is an attitude in the English game that applauds his style of play. It is something that I, as a twenty four year old, was also brought up on in youth football. Take the ball but if you can, take the man as well. Apparently it’s good old fashioned English play. The truth is though, it is unnecessary.

The physical element of the Premier League is partly what makes it so entertaining and physical contact should always be part of the game but there are certain teams that make up for their lack of technical quality with consistently overly aggressive play. Chelsea are a physical team, in that they dominate teams by winning 50/50 challenges but they prove that you don’t have to overstep the mark. There is a line but a number of teams cross it far too regularly in the Premiership.

Arsenal are no angels either, William Gallas made a tackle twice as bad as Shawcross’ earlier in the season, and until the FA intervene players will continue to jeopardise the career’s of fellow professionals. Wenger says that it is no coincidence that we have been the victims of the most serious injuries in the past four years as there is a strongly supported theory that kicking Arsenal out of the game is the best way to beat us. This is a very understandable argument but it is impossible to prove.

If Wenger wants to instigate change, the authorities will be more likely to listen if he takes his Arsenal bias out of the equation. There are bad tackles occurring every week and they need to be punished.

Before the incident it had been a hotly contested game, proof that we are not adverse to the physical aspect of football. We acquitted ourselves well, until Shawcross overstepped the mark.

After Ramsey departed it was hard to concentrate on the game but there was still a vital three points for the taking. Somehow Fabregas regained his focus to drag the team over the line, finishing with two assists and a goal. It was a truly inspiring finale and provides the perfect script for the most unlikely league triumph.

There will be plenty of time for title talk but for now, we have to attempt to ensure that Ramsey’s broken leg isn’t forgotten and that there is a shift in attitude in the English game before another teenager’s career is thrown into jeopardy.

Photo: Action Images

Arsenal Polls