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Now now now Ireland, come on now stop crying, I know it hurts to miss out on the World Cup, I would still blame Ronald Koeman for England missing out on the 1994 World Cup if I gave a shit, but don't let's pretend every single Irish player wouldn't have handled the ball in the same way as Thierry Henry last night had they been in his position.

Well, I say in the same way, perhaps not to so delicately and with such nonchalance as Henry, as if he were teasing a moist pussy from behind. No, the Irish may not have fingered the ball with the same Gallic sexual dexterity as Titi, but they would have thumped it over to the waiting striker nonetheless.

Some facts: If the game is to continue with this luddite attitude towards the use of technology in the game, then controversies like Henry's part in the France winner last night will remain as much a part of the game as own goals, freakish deflections and the intervention of outside agents.

Ireland have had two years to qualify for the World Cup, so blaming this single incident in a 24 month campaign to reach the finals in South Africa is just self-absorbed navel-gazing. You had your chances, you blew them.

Don't hate the player hate the game as the kids say. If the rewards for cheating are to remain so high, while the risks remain so low, then player exploitation of the patchwork quilt manner in which the game is officiated will remain as much a part of the fabric of football as all the other myriad of things in the game that make us tear our hair out and cry our wee hearts out with joy all in the same 90 minutes.

We shouldn't ignore the fact also that Ireland still only needed to score one goal to win the game even after William Gallas' goal, so if, as the Irish camp are claiming, they had France on the racks and were the best team on the night and over the two legs, they should have jolly well gone up the other end and scored and not lost the first leg in Ireland. Why on earth, if you're the best team, would you want to settle for the lottery of Penalties?

So anyway, shame shame shame, but I think if you went through the careers of every Irish striker with a fine tooth comb you'll fine similar examples of Henry's improvisation on their records too - so do spare us all the phony pious results orientated outrage. Had it been Robbie Keane's hand we'd all be saying how it was ball to fumbling clumsy hand.

Labels: Awesome, Football