Games ban for Russia closer?

I’ll be honest and say I’m conflicted.

While Fifa has approved a two-year trial period for the use of video technology to assist referees, I’m also, often, a bit old-school when it comes to football.

Technology will soon be used in situations like red cards, penalties and mistaken identity.

Yes, sport has had to move with the times and, with so much money invested and such a lot depending on the interpretation of the man in the middle, it probably is the best way to go.

But, for example, especially in the case of fouls, how will a video be able to judge the intensity of a clash between players?

Was it just a “handbag” push or was it a harsh shove?

The referee is close up and seeing it in real time, while the video slowmotion version certainly doesn’t capture the essence of the incident. Often, in such cases, it depends mostly on which side of the fence you’re sitting on. But, like that famous Italian referee Pierluigi Collina suggests: “It’s a step forward, certainly, because criticising referees today is like insulting a doctor in the 1800s who made an inaccurate diagnosis. He wasn’t less talented than today’s doctors, he just didn’t have access to x-rays.” THE prospect of Russia being banned from athletics at the Rio Olympics appears to be edging closer, after it was alleged coaches who were involved in systematic doping remain in their jobs.

Russia are suspended from international athletics competition, but a German TV documentary alleges that suspended coaches continue to operate in rural Russia. Footage apparently shows a Russian coach, Vladimir Mokhnev, training top athletes. – Daily Mail