THE VOTE Is it a good idea to get rid of draws & decide league matches with a penalty shoot-out?

Ollie Irish

15th, March 2007

14 Comments

Cologne_penalty_shoot_out
Managers and chairmen have predictably ridiculed Football League proposals to decide drawn games with a penalty shoot-out, for which a bonus point would be awarded to the winning team. This radical idea, a brainstorm of Football League chairman Lord Mawhinney, would supposedly make games more exciting. Personally, I think it’s a barmy idea – as Arsene Wenger has said, draws are a part of football culture and it makes no sense to do away with them. The only upside I could see is that English players would get some much-needed penalty practice. What do you think?

Posted in Miscellaneous

Share this article: Email

14 Comments

  1. Josh says:

    i really dont see the point, i mean what is wrong with draws anyway. Lower teams will just spend their time practising penalties and getting eleven men behind the ball. Wheres the fun in that, also wont 30 mins of extra time just add on to the game congestion that everbody compains about. What next, next 2 points for a goal from outside the box?

  2. OmegaSupremeho says:

    How about “special team” players, managers have a horn they can sound at any point during either half. At that point one of the “special team” can enter the fray, for example a big 7 foot player for corners or a second keeper if your under the cosh.
    Sorry tripped out a bit there. It is a crazy idea but I’d like to hear Jimmy Hills’ opinion before I decide.

  3. kj says:

    This Yank bastard answers with an emphatic “NO.” MLS tried it and scrapped it. If even we Americans can get that right, why would the home of the game even consider it?!
    (I also hate them in the NHL, but many hockey fans seem to like them, go figure. I still don’t think there’s anything wrong with allowing the game to finish in a tie.)

  4. FB says:

    Here it is from our Savior Ollie:
    Plymouth boss Ian Holloway echoed the views saying the idea was ‘a moment of madness’.
    ‘Has an American taken over the Football League or something because they don’t like draws in their soccer matches do they,’ he said.
    lol

  5. Josh says:

    great idea omega lol

  6. Josh says:

    great idea omega lol

  7. mike says:

    I don’t think we should have penaltie shoot-outs at all in any competitions – not even (and especially not) the World Cup Final. If a final of a cup competition ends in a draw after extra time, then just leave it as a draw with neither side winning. The possibility of NOT winning the cup given a draw may or may not provide an incentive for teams to really go for it, instead of playhing it safe and the game degenerating into yet another penalty farce. Besides, the possibility of two finalists drawing and thus not winning a cup would seem, IMHO, to enhance its’ prestige and value when it is won. Draws are good for the game.

  8. Jay says:

    I see your point, mike, but I reckon it’s better to put an indefinite period of golden goal-extra time in, in which managers are allowed three extra subs. I mean, if Tennis or cricket matches can last that long, why can’t football games?

  9. bryn says:

    i agree with mike that finals shouldnt finish with a penalty shootout but they do need a winner. great games like the Liv v west ham fa cup final, and liv v ac milan champ league final deserve to be decided in a better way than a shootout. as jay said, playing a golden goal extra time without a limit would certainly make for a great conclusion to the game.
    besides, this could well be the key for england to actually win something soon.

  10. ze says:

    actually, penalties are thrilling ending to a great competition, however the shootout after each league game would be rather boring and unfair (1 point ain`t a world cup (qt/semi)final and penalties are random somehow)

  11. Lew says:

    You know how they do the possession statson sky? Well how about in the event of a draw, making the team that spent the longest “in possession” in the oppositions half the winner? Would make teams push forward and would also make teams press for the ball around the centre circle when not in possession which could make for good counter attacking footie.
    Admittedly you couldn’t bring it to the lower divisions but it would probably be a better indicator of the way a Premiership match went than, for example, a corner count or the dumb luck/superb skill of a penalty shootout (delete as applicable to yourself!)

  12. Em says:

    Just play, that’s it.
    I was a bit of a multinational child, but my dad is from France and I’ve supported their team since I was eight. The way that this year’s World Cup Final ended left me just gutted. I wouldn’t have been so sour had it been in actually gameplay, rather than on PKs when several of our best kick takers (achem…) were off. Not that M. David T did us any favours.
    I think Jay’s got a nice idea there. Players will be tired, right enough, but that just means that someone will bollocks up a block or something soon. Much better.

  13. Oli says:

    Terrible idea (which will never be used anyway). My main criticism would be that if a team, struggling to stay up or as they know they could still be going home with nothing. We know penalties are a lottery, why not going for promotion, scored an equaliser in the last minute, they would have no reason to celebrate just toss a coin, it’s that ridiculous.