Al Nahdha's goalkeeper Taisir Al Antaif was about to make a clearance early in the second half with the scores still at 2-2 - but noticed that his shoelace had come undone, and was clearly nervous about his boot coming off as he kicked.
The opposing striker bearing down on him, a Brazilian by the name of Jobson, noticed what was going on - but instead of trying to take advantage, he ran up to his opponent and did his shoelace for him.
Al Antaif slapped his new friend on the back as thanks, and gave him a high five afterwards before getting on with the game.
But, here's where it turned sour penalizing the keeper for taking too long with his clearance.
He awarded an indirect free kick inside the area, and the home side lined up, clearly fearing the worst as Al Ittihad's strike force discussed their attacking options.
But in one of the most subtle and greatest insults given to a match official, Al Ittihad did the decent thing and merely passed the ball safely off the pitch. Even the supporters cheered at the gesture.
In a single stroke, the players managed to endorse a magnificent moment of sportsmanship between two opponents, while highlighting what an idiot the referee had made of himself.
Up yours Ref ..... Switch Player
Game between Al Nahdha and Al Ittihad on Thursday reaffirms the notion of sportsmanship - while simultaneously justifying every evil thought you've ever thought about a referee. -yt
22 Comments
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brycewi19Sportsmanship at its best right there.
Humanity still has a chance!
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entr0pyI've got to side with the ref on this one. You've got to keep these footballers on track or they'll do nothing but tie each others' shoes and braid each others' hair.
chingaleraOh and it's the fine line barely navigable, to turn a friendly football match into some visiting-team's mayhem on city streets aft-
I've got to side with the ref on this one. You've got to keep these footballers on track or they'll do nothing but tie each others' shoes and braid each others' hair.
bjornenlindaTie a ribbon...
sadiciousLet's say ref's have to follow the rules despite sportsmanship: How is it the goalkeeper's fault to not clear the ball in time if the opposing team is holding onto his foot?
EvilDeathBeeSportsman ship... in SOCCER?? Why I'd never thought I'd see the day
YogiAs a referee the ref does make us look bad. He's just not used to this sort of situation, he's used to players screaming and crying for everything in the world even the smallest stupidest of perceived slights. He probably has whiplash from jerking his head around to listen to whiny players.
At this level though especially you should be able to feel the temperature of the game and the expectations of players. He could've let this go and been pragmatic but he didn't and that's a shame. No doubt this was a long conversation after with him and his coach and ARs so he's likely to never make this mistake again. Also it shows a great example to referees like me to be mindful of these sort of situations.
noimsIt's a trap!
Oh and it's the fine line barely navigable, to turn a friendly football match into some visiting-team's mayhem on city streets aft-
QuboidThe goalkeeper should have told the referee that he had a problem, I believe the ref would then stop the game so the keeper can correct his equipment. Outfield players would have to go off the pitch but for keepers, the game stops.
It would have been nice if the ref had let it slide but I don't see this has a horrible decision or a big f-you to the ref.
dagComment hidden because you are ignoring dag.(show it anyway)
Sift of the week!
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YogiSometimes when you mess up you have to own up to it as a referee. The best thing he could've done in this situation after making the call is say it was an inadvertent whistle and restart play with a drop ball to the keeper. Which he would've done anyways if there was a stoppage of play that doesn't result in a free kick, like a quick correction of a players kit.
The goalkeeper should have told the referee that he had a problem, I believe the ref would then stop the game so the keeper can correct his equipment. Outfield players would have to go off the pitch but for keepers, the game stops.
It would have been nice if the ref had let it slide but I don't see this has a horrible decision or a big f-you to the ref.
Fairbssays...I think that's entr0py's job to say that.
http://videosift.com/member/entr0py
It's a trap!
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