The ugly head of football hooliganism showed itself when the Western Sydney Wanderers travelled to Melbourne to face the Victory just a short 2 weeks ago. Scores of violence and ugly scenes resulted in nationwide condemnation of the actions and labelled the perpetrators as ‘’soccer hooligans’’. We will never condone those actions of the small minority of idiots who decide to engage in this violent behaviour, but the way these events are reported on, as opposed to other sports is mind numbing.
Now this is when the hypocrisy begins in mainstream media. The A-League has grown and grown every season, but this fact is ignored in favour of reporting on the league in a bad light. Any semblance of violent tendencies and clashes between rival supporters grab the headlines more than a fantastic game on the pitch, rather than the idiots off the pitch. The football codes of Australia: The National Rugby League (NRL) and the Australian Football League and also cricket have also had hooliganism problems in the past, with a famous one from the NRL coming from a clash between supporters of the same club.
Now this is when the hypocrisy begins in mainstream media. The A-League has grown and grown every season, but this fact is ignored in favour of reporting on the league in a bad light. Any semblance of violent tendencies and clashes between rival supporters grab the headlines more than a fantastic game on the pitch, rather than the idiots off the pitch. The football codes of Australia: The National Rugby League (NRL) and the Australian Football League and also cricket have also had hooliganism problems in the past, with a famous one from the NRL coming from a clash between supporters of the same club.
The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs club had troubles with violence, but while these actions were vilified by all media, they were somewhat dismissed as the violence on the field contributed somewhat to the violence off it. In the AFL clashes between fierce rivals Carlton and Collingwood has resulted in arrests and condemnation, they are also dismissed as part of the game where tempers will flair. So my question is: How are these incidents different to that of the clashes between Wanderers and Victory supporters?
Another interesting example is that of the cricket. The Ashes was an incredible success for Australia with a 5-0 whitewash of the old enemy, but reports of off-field incidents were rare. Sure, there are always a few idiots at the cricket who’ve had one too many beers and cause a disturbance, but that’s not a big deal. Well, it seems to be a different story for the A-League. The hypocrisy is mind numbing.
A comparison doing the rounds on social media is two articles: one is of the Red and Black Block (RBB) active support for the Wanderers, cheering on their wheelchair football team in a tournament. The other is an incident where a wheelchair was stolen from an AFL match. This begs a question: Does the media prefer reporting on the negatives, or the positives? I think l know the answer.
Another interesting example is that of the cricket. The Ashes was an incredible success for Australia with a 5-0 whitewash of the old enemy, but reports of off-field incidents were rare. Sure, there are always a few idiots at the cricket who’ve had one too many beers and cause a disturbance, but that’s not a big deal. Well, it seems to be a different story for the A-League. The hypocrisy is mind numbing.
A comparison doing the rounds on social media is two articles: one is of the Red and Black Block (RBB) active support for the Wanderers, cheering on their wheelchair football team in a tournament. The other is an incident where a wheelchair was stolen from an AFL match. This begs a question: Does the media prefer reporting on the negatives, or the positives? I think l know the answer.
A sensationalist journalist named Rita Panahi has come under fire this week by football loyalists as her insatiable desire to cause dissension in the ranks came full swing this week, as her ‘’soccer bashing’’ went to incredible lengths. One thing that really annoyed me from her tirade was a viral video which surfaced of her and a man talking about how ‘’soccer is dead’’ in Australia. Another quote includes ‘’I couldn’t care less about soccer’’ contrast this to how she has tried her absolute hardest to get people’s attention with her apparent know it all attitude to the issues involving the crowd violence from the AAMI Park match. I am certainly a believer in the motto ‘’everyone is entitled to their opinion’’ but her opinions were so unbelievable it was hard to take her seriously. Anyone that had a different opinion to hers was a ‘’soccer troll’’, no Rita, we just disagree wholeheartedly with your insane logic.
In a world cup year we definitely want the beautiful game to be reported on in a positive light, rather than a negative. I certainly believe that football should be appreciated and at least respected as an ever growing game. It is the most popular sport in the world, but with insular beliefs like Ms. Panahi’s the game’s growth is stalled. Australia is becoming a footballing nation and there are some who don’t want to believe it. The rugby codes will always have a place in Australia, but they will soon have to make some leeway for the beautiful game.
This debate will continue on for a long period of time due to that there will always be ‘’soccer haters’’ in the media who would rather see the game fail than grow. While there will be the football loyalists who will stand by their club, and never accept the few idiots who cause trouble. And while those idiots forfeit their right to support their team, the real supporters will attend and support their team through thick and thin.
All l would like is for journalists to do their research before writing an article that is just devoid of logic and where facts are misconstrued or ignored in favour of personal beliefs.
In a world cup year we definitely want the beautiful game to be reported on in a positive light, rather than a negative. I certainly believe that football should be appreciated and at least respected as an ever growing game. It is the most popular sport in the world, but with insular beliefs like Ms. Panahi’s the game’s growth is stalled. Australia is becoming a footballing nation and there are some who don’t want to believe it. The rugby codes will always have a place in Australia, but they will soon have to make some leeway for the beautiful game.
This debate will continue on for a long period of time due to that there will always be ‘’soccer haters’’ in the media who would rather see the game fail than grow. While there will be the football loyalists who will stand by their club, and never accept the few idiots who cause trouble. And while those idiots forfeit their right to support their team, the real supporters will attend and support their team through thick and thin.
All l would like is for journalists to do their research before writing an article that is just devoid of logic and where facts are misconstrued or ignored in favour of personal beliefs.