To walk, or not to walk off pitch?

[GazX]

That is the question which looks like rising it head during this Euro 2012.
http://espnfc.com/uk/en/news/1090033...g-session.html

etherlands captain Mark Van Bommel branded racial abuse "a real disgrace" on the eve of Euro 2012 after a number of players were allegedly subjected to monkey chants at a training session in Krakow.

Van Bommel claims Oranje players were targeted by Polish fans as they began running warm-up laps at the Stadion Miejski on Thursday evening. The midfielder responded to the taunts by leading the Dutch squad to the far side of the pitch before hitting out at the perpetrators in a press conference.

"It is a real disgrace, especially after getting back from [a visit to] Auschwitz, that you are confronted with this," Van Bommel is quoted as saying in several newspapers. "We will take it up with UEFA and if it happens at a match we will talk to the referee and ask him to take us off the field."

When questioned over the incident by Dutch journalists who claimed they did not hear the abuse, Van Bommel said: "You need to open your ears. If you did hear it, and don't want to hear it, that is even worse."

Reports in Poland suggest local fans were protesting because Krakow was overlooked as a host city for the European Championship. The alleged incident comes ahead of England holding their first open training session in the city on Friday, with 3,500 spectators expected to attend.

Van Bommel's threat to lead his side from the pitch if the trouble persists during the tournament will not be welcome news to UEFA president Michel Platini, who earlier this week stated players walking from the field of play would be handed yellow cards.

The Netherlands begin their Euro 2012 Group B campaign against Denmark on Saturday.

[Paul Marin]

Walk.

[OJ]

The reporters are weird. Platini is not making up a rule it. Is the current rule if you leave the pitch without consent. Secondly isnt this what the biggots want .

[Rudi]

The problem is that Platini and UEFA take the potential reaction to racism seriously. They don't take the racist actions of the fans as serious. All part of the European way of thinking.

[Mosiah]

Check the ref and get his permission. If he does not give the permission when there is clear abuse, WALK!

[Assasin]

Having players deciding when to walk is simply bad for the game. The question is when do a player decide to walk? The officals and match officals have to deal with this. Player walking without permission will only end in punishment for the player and that shouldn't be the case.

The officals however have to be sensitive of the case and act accordingly. I can only hope some good football is played and that the hooligans don't take over.

[Jangle]

Run!!!!

[Assasin]

whe you a go run go????

The field might be the safest place for you anyway.

[Jangle]

hehe...true

[Nemesis]

I don't believe in walking if a couple fans are being jerks. Now if its a significant section of the crowd, indeed run off.

[Rudi]

Racism is BAD for the game. Even if you are a Liverpool fan(joke).

[OJ]

yes but walking off the pitch as an individual is not an option. If there is racist or unruly crowd behaviour throw them out. I don't think Platini is saying that. He is saying you cant walk off the field and I agree with him.

[GazX]

Having players deciding when to walk is simply bad for the game. The question is when do a player decide to walk? The officals and match officals have to deal with this. Player walking without permission will only end in punishment for the player and that shouldn't be the case.

The officals however have to be sensitive of the case and act accordingly. I can only hope some good football is played and that the hooligans don't take over.

How would you have the match officials deal with such situations during a match. And if it was Anti Semetic chants by Neo Nazis fans would Platini et al be more sympathetic if Jewish players walked off in disgust?

[OJ]

the stewards deal with it by throwing out the culprits. Dont understand how we got to Michel not understanding the issue. He is saying you cannot arbitrarily walk off the field. That would bring chaos.

[OJ]

Euro 2012: John Barnes backs Michel Platini's racism view

By Ben Smith BBC Sport
John Barnes backs Uefa president Michel Platini's stance over booking players who walk off the pitch during Euro 2012 in protest at racist abuse.
The ex-England winger insists racism is not an issue players should deal with.
Barnes was speaking after Holland players were racially abused during a training session on Wednesday.
"I 100 per cent back [Platini]. A player cannot arbitrarily decide he is receiving racial abuse and walk off," Barnes told BBC Sport.
Continue reading the main story

“You cannot arbitrarily as a player decide that because what you perceive racist abuse has come your way you are going to walk off”

John Barnes

Barnes suffered racist abuse throughout his career, the worst of which saw bananas being thrown on to the field during matches for Watford and Liverpool.
But the 48-year-old former Liverpool player said he would never walk off a field if he were playing at Euro 2012.
"It wouldn't be a problem to me because I am there to play football," Barnes added. "If it is a problem then the authorities have to deal with it, players shouldn't deal with it."
Barnes insists that the officials and the authorities should be left to tackle the issue. "We have to get on with the football and let the authorities do whatever they, in terms of legislation, in terms of sanctions, in terms of what they are going to do," he added.
"We can't take it upon ourselves, we still have the laws of the game. What Michel Platini said is that the referee has the power to stop the game if he believes there has been racist abuse and therefore that the players need to go by the referee's decision.
"You cannot arbitrarily as a player decide that because what you perceive racist abuse has come your way you are going to walk off.
"If then you say that every individual player can arbitrarily decide whether they are getting racist abuse or not then you could have five players walking off in every game because of what they have decided. Which is ridiculous."
The issue first came to light when Mario Balotelli suggested he would walk off the pitch if he was targeted in Poland and Ukraine.
"I hope there will not be a problem with racism at the Euros," the Manchester City forward said in an interview with France Football. "Because if it does happen I would leave the pitch straightaway and go home."