Problem to tackle head on

Nov 9 2008 Gordon Waddell

REMEMBER when tackling was an art? When defenders could be both hard and fair?

When you applauded a well timed, perfectly-executed challenge the same way you would if a winger skinned his man?

Excuse me for getting all misty eyed and sentimental.

Craig Levein and Gordon Strachan seem to have forgotten what it's all about as well.

One's complaining we'll soon have to play the game in our baffies, it has gone so soft and sanitised.

The other's demanding protection for his ball players because they're being tackled too hard and too often.

And they're both wrong.

In Strachan's case you have to love the irony.

He's up in arms because Shunsuke Nakamura was booked for dissent, complaining about Kilmarnock players having the temerity to tackle him.

This from a team whose two centre halves have both put players in hospital in the past two seasons.

Stephen McManus' brutal tackle on Falkirk's Dean Holden caused a double leg break that forced him out for nine months.

Gary Caldwell's shocker on David Fernandez wrecked his cruciate and cost the Spaniard 18 months of his career. Caldwell got a yellow. McManus went unpunished.

Both were awful challenges - but then so was Roy O'Donovan's on Holden last weekend.

The Irishman steamed in at full pelt, legs extended straight, and went through ball, man and all.

All to win a throw-in.

Levein claimed his man had won the ball and moaned because his player was red-carded.

Which would be fine if that was the only relevant factor under the laws of the game. But it's not.

Take a look for yourself. A referee has to meet criteria for an illegal challenge. A player has to win the ball in a fair manner.

If he doesn't a ref has to determine the seriousness of the offence and there are four bullet points.

His chance of actually playing the ball is only one of them. If he does but goes through his man with enough speed, intent and disregard for the player's safety then it's still a red card.

And that's the problem at the heart of this argument. It's not that tackling's being lost to the game. Just that good tackling is being lost.

It's a skill, isn't it? An art. You're not telling me it can't be taught the same as any other skill?

So I'd love to know how many managers and coaches ever work on it with their players. I know it can't be easy to practise. You can picture the scene eh? A line of wingers and midfielders running at a full back.

"Right, wee man. Outside him, that's it... okay, let's see the challenge.... Nnnnnmmmph! Aaaargh ya *&!@! Not good enough... next!"

It's not like you can use the Under-9s like crash test dummies.

But there's enough skill and timing involved that you have to be able to coach some of it into your players.

Levein, who was a defender of quality, must cringe at some of the stuff he sees these days.

For example, how many players do you see making penalty box challenges with the wrong leg?

Defenders have a problem these days when they're scared to tackle because of the consequences.

You could see that on Wednesday when Kevin Thomson went dancing through United to equalise.

If Morgaro Gomis or Willo Flood had enough faith in their tackling ability they'd have had him.

Instead they were terrified of what they'd give away. Any contact with a fellow pro these days sees a tumble, so they left him and paid the price.

And that's where everyone has a responsibility to restore the art.

The tacklers and the tackled. There has to be a place for it. But it has to be done right.