Referees being stricter on the soft stuff is a breath of fresh air. To be fair, we all moaned when Dessers or Gassama got slated for going down easy, yet we still expect protection when it suits us. The truth is consistency matters more than sympathy. If officials stop rewarding every nick and tumble, the game becomes cleaner and less theatre-driven.

Enough with the theatrical falls

You can see players throwing themselves to the deck as if shot and getting a foul. I like that these kind of dives aren’t being automatically rewarded anymore. It forces attackers to stay on their feet and defenders to be braver in challenges. It also means the ball bounces back into play more often, which keeps the tempo up and the game more honest. Fans are fed up of the constant crumpling after minimal contact, especially when it comes from behind.

What about consistency though?

There are grey moments. I reckon a few Scotland penalty claims and the incidents people moaned about last night were contact, but perhaps not enough to be clear cut fouls. Referees will always be asked to make split-second decisions. The key is a consistent standard across matches so teams know what to expect and can adapt. If the standard is 'clear and obvious', then both players and managers will learn to play to that whistle.

Countdowns and stopping the time-wasters

On top of that, introduce a visible countdown for throw-ins, goal-kicks and similar dead-ball situations. Count players down for taking too long and wave it up if there’s deliberate time-wasting. It would shame the persistent offenders into moving quicker and cut out a lot of the deliberate stalling we see, especially against us. Small changes like that could make a big difference to the flow and fairness of our games.

Call it pragmatic. Call it old-fashioned. But stopping soft freebies and curbing time-wasting gives the match back to the players who actually want to play. You can see why it’s catching on and I’d welcome it here as well.

Written by Angus1812: 6 July 2026

Tags: squad