Real Football??

Fell asleep.

And the game wasn’t even half way through! Or … maybe it was more than half-way through when I dozed off …

I had settled myself down to watch two hotshot Eurocup football teams hammer away at each other for a place in the semi-finals. Gosh, another one of those games likely to go to a penalty shoot-out …

And I dreamt.

I found myself in a room where some very, very well-to-do folk had agreed that they were dissatisfied with the idea of a penalty shoot-out to decide a winner in a football game. “Robbed the game of its beauty,” they swore.

And they plotted to bring a twist to the “beautiful game” that was worth their while. For they believed that goals “in-play” should determine a game’s outcome. And fans love goals.

So they schemed their scheme in this way: If the scores are tied at full-time, an extra 10-minute period is added, to be played in the following manner:

1. Two (2) halves of five (5) minutes each;

2. Half of the field is utilised;

3. A backs-and-forwards structure is employed: six (6) “forwards” and four (4) “backs” including the goalkeeper;

4. The teams may make a new selection of their respective players using the bench;

5. A coin toss determines the first-half attacking team (A), which will choose their preferred playing half of the field;

6. The second-half attacking team (B) will defend their goal in the first half, and the teams switch thereafter;

7. The kick-off is done by the goalkeeper of the defending team from the penalty spot;

8. The attacking team stands at the halfway line until kick-off;

9. Cards given during regular play are retained;

10. Normal playing conditions are observed;

If the scores are still tied at the end of the ten (10) minutes, then:

1. A seventh forward is added to each playing line-up;

2. The teams engage in the same twin-halved format for a maximum of five (5) minutes;

3. A sudden-death method is used in this instance, with the half ending when a goal is scored;

4. The second-half attacking team must then score within the given time to be declared the winner.

Well, I woke up. Some other game was on the screen. A bit of a head-scratcher, that dream …