Sunday 11 September 2011

If Football Matches Finished at Half-Time

(Words By Anthony Hodgson)

Hello there, yes it's me, after buying Full Metal Dagger a burger and a late night chat about blogging (he posted something I got nosey, then made him an offer), I now work for the hairy mafia. I would just like to thank Full Metal Dagger and Jerk From The Coach for allowing me to now post my inner thoughts on Dagenham and Redbridge on their site. So let's get started shall we?


I asked for ideas about a new blog post, I was originally going to trapse through the forum and give my take on some of the hot topics on there, something I may do in the future, but Thomas Thorn gave me a better idea so thanks for the title mate.

What if by some quirk of fate FIFA decided that what football needed wasn't goal line technology, balls with sensors in, 5 referees, clubs run financially properly, a bribe free organisation, but for matches to end at half-time whatever the result was at the time? A bit like the golden goal rule they had at one stage, must say great idea there Sepp got anymore stonkers? Women wearing tighter tops for football? Sorry you tried that one didn't you, anyway here's what I found out.

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Would it change the course of history? Would it mean that clubs that survived on the last day of the season be relegated instead? Would it effect those who won promotion not have achieved it? To be honest I couldn't really care less, and seeing as this is a Dagenham and Redbridge site let's concentrate on the daggers shall we?

So looking back over our league history, having looked through loads of stats (you've got to love Wikipedia), consulted my memory banks, well I'm getting on and it ain't what it was, Christ I can't even remember the kids names half the time let alone whether I've just been to the toilet, (always best to go again if you can't remember) I have found out the following. Nothing, not a thing. There isn't a website I know of, so having come up short in my search I then decided to have a look at how many games as a league club we would have won and points we would have gained.

I shall be using what I shall call the Sepp Blatter stupid rule, well cricket has the duckworth-Lewis method and no one gets that do they? So how many points would we be on and also how many would we have lost using this method.

So here we go then the results are in and I can announce the following, the winner of this years X-factor is, oh crap sorry wrong blog :). Right back on track then.

In our first season in League 2 07-08 we gained 49pts in total using the Sepp Blatter rule we would have ended the season on 39pts a difference of 10 points

Season 08-09 when we just missed the play-offs we gained 68pts in total, using the Sepp Blatter rule we would have ended the season on 47pts a difference of 21 points

Season 09-10 our promotion winning season we ended on 72pts in total, using the Sepp Blatter rule we would have ended the season on 34pts a difference of 38 points

Season 10-11 our only season in League 1 we ended on 47pts in total, using the Sepp Blatter rule we would have ended the season on 29pts a difference of 18 points.

So what does this all mean then? Well, hang on a minute while I work it out, 2+3-4x22= I have no idea! No seriously, believe it or not our future wouldn't have changed. We would still have been relegated last season, we would still have been promoted a couple of seasons ago.

That my friends is the beauty of football, you can stick as many equations and stupid rules into it as much as you like but at the end of the day nothing changes. Players will miss open goals, score stunning 30 yarders, teams will somehow beat their rivals 8-2, and underdogs will win games they shouldn't.

You can't change football no matter how much you try, you can't for a simple reason, it's played by humans for humans. When emotion is involved all reason goes out of the window. Football is a game of passion and emotion, so let's leave it alone and live with the memories, good and bad, that have been created by it and not worry about the what ifs? Because in football the what ifs are what make the game the beauty that it is.

Thank you to statsbuster.com for all the football league records.

Ant

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