When hard turns to reckless

NEIL Taylor’s tackle on Seamus Coleman was wrong in just about every way. It was reckless, late, and the appalling point of impact on Coleman’s right leg shows it was high, too.

Understandably, condemnation was universal. Yet did Taylor set out to cause harm, or even to foul? That is harder to prove. The replays show a moment of hesitation from the Welsh defender. He doesn’t think he can get there, then he does, and in that instant commits to go in as ferociously as he can, to win the ball. For this reason, he is all out of sync when he does arrive.

It is ironic that Coleman should be a victim on the night, when earlier in the week Ire- land coach, Roy Keane, advocated robust measures to deal with Gareth Bale.

“The basic advice if you’re up against a world-class player is, somebody get to him as quick as you can, and don’t let him get his head up like he does at Real Madrid,” Keane said. “Tackle him. Hit him, fairly. Tackling is part of the game.”

The impact on Coleman was catastrophic, and Taylor’s red card entirely justified, but in many ways he was doing all that Keane advocated, except his execution was atrocious.

The line between hard and reckless is slim. There have been worse tackles, certainly in the mind of the perpetrator. Keane, more than anyone, will know that too. – Daily Mail