Should handshakes before Premiership games be scrapped ?

[tototoner]

so the Premiership is back on again this weekend and all they are talking about in the build up is the handshakes before the Chelsea and QPR game

bore off once and for all and scrap this pathetic childish waste of time

 

[Riandor]

If players can't manage to show a small amount of gentlemanly respect then sweet jesus...

Scrap it then before it becomes more about who didn't shake a hand and thus becomes a way to make statements, but it's a shame that professionals can't manage something as trivial as a hand shake.

 

[tototoner]

If players can't manage to show a small amount of gentlemanly respect then sweet jesus...

Scrap it then before it becomes more about who didn't shake a hand and thus becomes a way to make statements, but it's a shame that professionals can't manage something as trivial as a hand shake.

I just think its far more hassle than its worth and it is overshadowing the whole build up to some game

shake hands after the game like they used to, sorted

 

[nailsy]

How many people actually watch the handshake before a normal game? I know I don't. Just let the Captains shake hands during the coin toss and get on with the game. If other players want to shake hands they will do - you see them doing it in the tunnel all the time.

 

[chinaman]

The original football that I grew up with never had these silly pre-game nonsense, and the football then was much more enjoyable.

 

[ShelfSide18]

I'm all for it actually.

I coach a youth team and I think it is a good thing that they have to shake hands before the game, I think it subtly promotes a good image of mutual respect and sporting spirit, especially when it is happening from the top down in the EPL. Slowly we may reclaim the game from ****s like John Terry and promote respect for yourself and the opposition, if having a handshake before kick off helps this then I'm all for it.

 

[Brosama]

no reason to scrap it just because one or two people don't wanna shake hands

 

[tototoner]

maybe we should ask the New Zealand Rugby team to shake hands after the Haka ?

i thought football was a competitive sport

 

[karennina]

no reason to scrap it just because one or two people don't wanna shake hands

Yes, why let Terry spoil this too? It's a nice, worthwhile show of respect and shared humanity, which costs sod all to anyone.

What amazing plans does anyone have to do with the 60 seconds saved? Moar economic output?

 

[werty]

What amazing plans does anyone have to do with the 60 seconds saved? Moar economic output?

 

[tototoner]

Yes, why let Terry spoil this too? It's a nice, worthwhile show of respect and shared humanity, which costs sod all to anyone.

What amazing plans does anyone have to do with the 60 seconds saved? Moar economic output?

No it's not, it's completely pointless. Causes no end of controversy , over shadows the build up to important Premiership games and has done absolutely nothing for the Respect campaign

I don't think I have heard 1 footballer current or ex that think they are a good idea

What to do with the saved 60 sec ? Start the game 60 sec earlier or add the 60 sec to HT

 

[kishman]

So Anton avoided John and Ashley, and understable. Terry's a ****

 

[karennina]

No it's not, it's completely pointless. Causes no end of controversy , over shadows the build up to important Premiership games and has done absolutely nothing for the Respect campaign

I don't think I have heard 1 footballer current or ex that think they are a good idea

What to do with the saved 60 sec ? Start the game 60 sec earlier or add the 60 sec to HT

So given that the custom is generally understood to be "a nice, worthwhile show of respect and shared humanity", how are you going to back up the assertion that it's totally different between the lines of a football pitch? You know how players seek out the ref and opposition at the end of a match to do exactly the same thing? Of their own volition? Proves some of them find the custom meaningful and worthwhile doesn't it? Yes it does. So your case is that specifically at the start of matches, the custom is "completely" pointless. As it's socially constructed meaning in the first place, the measure of it's meaningfulness is in who finds it to be so, and you're trying to prove that the same people who do at 5pm, don't at 3pm.

 

[tototoner]

So given that the custom is generally understood to be "a nice, worthwhile show of respect and shared humanity", how are you going to back up the assertion that it's totally different between the lines of a football pitch? You know how players seek out the ref and opposition at the end of a match to do exactly the same thing? Of their own volition? Proves some of them find the custom meaningful and worthwhile doesn't it? Yes it does. So your case is that specifically at the start of matches, the custom is "completely" pointless. As it's socially constructed meaning in the first place, the measure of it's meaningfulness is in who finds it to be so, and you're trying to prove that the same people who do at 5pm, don't at 3pm.

You cannot force respect, players choose at the end if they want to acknowledge the ref or their opponent, it shouldn't be forced on them at the start because of some marketing , feel-good , media-show nonsense

 

[Pringle]

complete waste of time imo. Respect should be something that people want to show because they feel someone earns respect - forcing someone to shake hands doesnt show respect 1 little bit. It has caused more problems than its worth and has made no improvement to the respect campaign.

 

[montylynch]

But it was nice to see Terry and Cole mugged off like that. Couldn't have happened to a nicer person IMO.

 

[talkshowhost86]

I really don't see why it's a major issue at all? There's a sound principal behind why they want people to shake hands as it gives a good example to youngsters and the crowd in general, it doesn't take up much time at all and is generally observed by 99% of players. Why because 1% don't shake hands (for either legitimate or ridiculous reasons) does it become such a massive issue?

I love the way the media say things like, "well this is all we'll be talking about after the game...I think we should get rid of them."

How about just not talking about it after the game you hypocritical pisswhistles?

Keep the handshakes, people can refuse them if they want, and stop getting knickers twisted about the whole situation. It really is that easy.

On a separate note I like the other bit of hypocrisy in the media of those who say that Anton should just 'man up and shake hands' with Terry. This was the same media who got in such a tiz when Blatter suggested that racism could be dealt with by a handshake after the game. Honestly it's sometimes as if these chumps don't even remember what they wrote yesterday let alone last year.

 

[nailsy]

Liverpool and United have confirmed that Suarez and Evra will shake hands on Saturday so hopefully that won't overshadow the build up to the game now.

 

[tototoner]

Liverpool and United have confirmed that Suarez and Evra will shake hands on Saturday so hopefully that won't overshadow the build up to the game now.

I am sure that will be the end of it now

 

[dontcallme]

There are some complete morons who boo opposition national anthems, should we stop those as well?

As a kid I was always taught to show respect for the opposition and we'd go through rituals such as pre-match handshakes and then after the game 3 cheers for the opposition.

The media intensifies absolutely everything nowadays. Just because there have been a couple of cases, there haven't been many, of players refusing to shake hands we shouldn't get rid of it altogether.

At times I can understand it being difficult. I can understand Bridge not wanting to shake Terry's hand and Evra and Ferdinand probably don't want to shake the hands of people who racially abused them but a couple of isolated situations should not make for wholesale changes of something that is a positive.