MOASEY'S WEEK IN SPORT #3

"SWAN DIVE WITH TRIPLE ROLL ON THE GROUND" A MAJOR DEGREE OF DIFFICULTY FOR FIFA

June 24: DAVID MOASE is among a growing group of disgruntled World Cup watchers sick of the sight of seeing the world's best footballers reeling in agony after taking a dive....and suggests a role for the Australian Dving team or maybe Actor's Equity.

WITH Australia now returning home from the 2010 FIFA World Cup, beaten but not bowed, the focus turns to improving the squad for the next tournament in 2014.

Having watched many of the first round matches, perhaps the best thing the Socceroos could do as they plan for their next World Cup campaign is to consult the likes of Matthew Mitcham, Melissa Wu and Alex Croak.

That's right, our elite divers.

Sadly, while the wonderful skills of the world's best footballers have been a delight to watch during the past fortnight, the spectacle has been regularly ruined by the elaborate "diving" that continues to blight international football.

In every professional sport there is an element of gamesmanship, where players attempt to influence the referee's or umpire's decision buy making more of a situation than they know exists.

Rugby league players fall down like nine pins if touched by a decoy runner; union stars seem to go down with injury after every scrum and ruck in a bid to get their breath back; cricket bowlers and fieldsmen appeal raucously for catches even when they know the ball has gone nowhere near the edge of the bat.

But footballers take this to another level altogether.

The sport and its governing body FIFA should be embarrassed by the diving - or ‘simulation' as they euphemistically call it - on display at the World Cup, highlighted by the ‘backflip with hands clasped to the face' (degree of difficulty 3.2) performed by Cote d'Ivoire's Kader Keita that resulted in Brazilian star Kaka being sent-off this week.

Contact between the pair was minimal and nowhere near Keita's face.

Or there is the often seen ‘swan dive with triple roll on the ground' if a player senses an opponent's boot anywhere near his ankle.

Diving has been going on for years and FIFA seems no closer to finding a way to stop it. Surely, though, television replays provide the perfect vehicle for putting an end to this reprehensible practice.

FIFA is against using TV replays during games and while the visual aid would correct a number of wrong decisions it would also disrupt what is normally a free-flowing spectacle, a situation they are keen to avoid.

But what is wrong with watching replays of matches afterwards to pinpoint cases of blatant cheating and then acting to punish the perpetrators.

An official could look at an incident like Keita's dramatic flop and then do two things; rescind Kaka's second yellow card and his suspension, and take action against Keita.

If the Ivorian and his fellow divers were hit with one or two-match suspensions for acting, I'd guarantee that would be the last we'd see of diving in football for a long time.

Until FIFA shows some initiative, however, we will have to send out next generation of Socceroos to NIDA for acting lessons or to the NSW Institute of Sport for training sessions alongside Mitcham, Wu and Croak. 

Rugby league's racism row continues to leave an ugly scar on the game, with Greg Inglis in the past 24 hours suggesting Andrew Johns should have no future in the game.

As easy as it is to understand Inglis's anger at the abhorrent way Johns referred to him in the lead-up to State of Origin 2, any suggestion of a lifetime ban for Johns is surely way over the top.

Johns needs help to see the error of his ways and also to find a way to prove his contrition, not to be exiled from a game he needs as much as it needs him. Time surely will heal even these wounds.

It is important, however, that the sport doesn't let the man who courageously brought this problem into the spotlight, Timana Tahu, to suffer any longer.

Tahu is clearly troubled by his actions, as was seen in his wild play on Monday night that resulted in a four-match suspension.

Hopefully he will be able to use that time to get away from the spotlight and clear his head, and rugby league officials should do everything they can to help him achieve this.

If they don't, it could be a disenchanted and confused Tahu who is lost to the game at a time when his brave actions should be celebrated - and that would be a tragedy for all involved.