NOW LET REFS GET A GRIP ON GRAPPLERS

WITH luck, referee Gehad Grisha of Egypt has set a precedent regarding grappling in the box at this World Cup. His decision to award England a penalty in the face of persistent, flagrant manhandling by Panama’s defenders has to be the new standard if the tournament is not to descend into chaos. What happened to Aleksandar Mitrovic when Serbia played Switzerland on Friday was ridiculous. His movement was restricted by two players, one holding him across the chest, the other at the waist. Unchecked, this behaviour has escalated. First players were held, then thrown to the ground. This, in a tournament that has access to VAR, has threatened to turn corners and free-kicks into farcical sideshows. Grisha addressed that, eventually. Slow to act, at first, he was clearly concerned that Panama were resorting to increasingly extreme tactics, thinking they would get away with it. The penalty decision was progress, but Grisha (above) should not be left on a limb. His judgment will only be meaningful if it is replicated in matches from here. Anything not stopped is encouraged, and to this point FIFA had as good as given defenders permission to cheat. This must stop, now.

England have been practising penalties for weeks — and who can say whether that contributed to Harry Kane’s confidence from the spot against Panama on Sunday? He may have been striking them like that in training from day one. It was, however, quite the most impressive hit from an English boot at a tournament in many years — reminiscent of Cristiano Ronaldo’s last-minute penalty winner for Real Madrid against Juventus in the Champions league this season. If repetition in training has played a part in that, credit is due to gareth Southgate. The biggest influence on his managerial career, Terry Venables (above), had a saying. ‘Practice doesn’t make perfect,’ he would insist. ‘Practice makes permanent.’ The more you work at a skill, the more it becomes second nature. That is what it looked like for Kane against Panama. We must hope there are four others like him, at least.