There are 1 million indian expats here in Qatar who make the bulk of the 2.8m population(only 300,000 Qataris) Contrary to popular belief, they love football almost as much as cricket, with all PL games screened here It's a bit surreal but they will easily outnumber the 'real' fans from almost every country Most of the Indian lads in my office are huge Brazil fans Definitely going to be a weird tournament
Someone taking the piss? Warrington goalkeeper Tony Thompson sent off after confronting fan who urinated in his bottle please log in to view this image Thompson joined Warrington Town from Altrincham in the summer A non-league goalkeeper says he was sent off for reacting to a fan who urinated in his water bottle during an FA Trophy tie. Warrington Town keeper Tony Thompson, 28, squirted the Guiseley fan after drinking from the bottle. It led to him receiving a red card an hour into Warrington's 1-0 home defeat on Saturday. "Today I fell out of love with the game!" former Altrincham and Morecambe player Thompson tweeted. "I've been called many names but for someone to [urinate] in my bottle, for me to drink it and then to be told I wasn't allowed to react because I'm a player is outrageous. "That person has put me my family's health at risk and knocked me sick." Guiseley released a statement on Sunday saying they have requested CCTV footage from Warrington Town so they can investigate the incident and identify the supporter involved. "We unreservedly condemn this disgraceful action," Guiseley said. "We deplore the actions of the individual(s) concerned and we will work alongside Warrington Town and the police to identify them. "If the individual(s) involved can be identified they will receive life bans from attending Guiseley AFC fixtures." The incident led to a long stoppage as players confronted fans behind the goal at Warrington's Cantilever Park, before the referee gave sent Thompson off. "I don't think I'll ever be involved in anything like that again," Warrington boss Mark Beesley told The Warrington Guardian. "The Guiseley staff apologised - it was disgusting and there's no place in life for things like that. "From our point of view, the welfare of our players is paramount and what Tony was subjected to was disgraceful."
Scottish football to ban heading the day before and after matches Published 7 hours ago Share please log in to view this image IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES Image caption, Heading will still be allowed during matches, but banned in training the day before and after games Professional footballers in Scotland are to be banned from heading the ball in training the day before and the day after a game. Clubs are also being told to limit exercises that involve repetitive heading to one session per week. The new guidelines come after Glasgow University research that showed former footballers were three-and-a-half times more likely to die from brain disease. Experts believe there could be a link to repetitive heading of the ball. Dementia death more likely in football Is US heading ban model the answer? The Scottish Football Association (SFA) already has guidelines in place limiting heading in youth football, with a ban on headers in training for the under-12 age group. Scotland was also the first country in the world to have a single set of concussion guidelines for all sports, with the "If in doubt, sit them out" campaign. The new guidelines are being introduced after consultation with the 50 clubs across the professional men's and women's game in Scotland and following an SFA survey of clubs to gauge heading trends. Clubs are also being told to monitor heading activity in training with the aim of reducing the overall burden of contact. Memory impairment Dr John MacLean has been the SFA doctor for more than 20 years and was involved in the 2019 field study that highlighted the link between dementia and former professional players. "While the research continues to develop, what we already know about heading and its effects on the brain suggests that there is measurable memory impairment lasting 24-48 hours following a series of headers, and that brain-related proteins can be detected in blood samples for a short time after heading," he said. "Brain scan changes have also been reported in footballers that may be linked to heading. "Therefore, the goal is to reduce any potential cumulative effect of heading by reducing the overall exposure to heading in training." please log in to view this image IMAGE SOURCE,GETTY IMAGES Image caption, The SFA has previously banned heading in training for under-12 age group players The new guidelines will mean a change for many training routines that involve set-piece exercises, the day before a match. "We've taken our time with this because we wanted to really engage with stakeholders across football," Dr MacLean said. "We wanted to determine just how much heading is taking place in training to get a baseline idea. "Then there was the engagement process with players, through PFA Scotland but also with the clubs, the managers and coaches through the Scottish FA. "It was all about collective responsibility and safeguarding player health and well-being." In-match heading Andy Gould, the SFA's chief football officer, said there was already a great deal of data around in-match heading. But he said the latest research had been "invaluable in understanding the extent of heading load within the training environment". He added: "I am grateful to the clubs, managers and players for providing us with the information and perspectives required to facilitate an informed and data-driven discussion which has culminated in the publication of guidelines designed to protect the safety and wellbeing of our players." Earlier this year, the FA in England introduced guidelines for clubs that limits players to 10 high impact headers per week, during training. A number of high-profile former footballers have died from dementia in recent years, including the former Celtic captain Billy McNeill and former England World Cup winner and Republic of Ireland manager Jack Charlton. please log in to view this image please log in to view this image There are huge physical and mental benefits to playing football, but the steps taken in recent years to reduce heading in the game reflects the growing concern about the science that continues to link football to long-term brain injury. The limited push-back from Scottish clubs, on new guidelines that could drastically change the way players train and managers coach, also shows the message is getting through. When new guidelines are introduced or new studies published, it always leads to the basic question "is heading a football safe?" The science shows what is happening to former professionals, but so far can't determine why. The latest data shows the risk is greater with defenders, who statistically head more often. For all of those reasons, the experts are taking no chances. It could take decades for new measures to provide the data that will lead to a definitive answer and science is not willing to wait. The evolution of style and tactics has meant fewer headers in the game anyway, but if the changes continue, due to mounting scientific evidence and pressure, it isn't difficult to imagine a game of the future without them.
SPL at it's finest.... Hearts' friendly with Almeria abandoned after 'altercations', says Scottish club Report Hearts' friendly match with UD Almeria in Spain was abandoned in the first half after fighting broke out between players. The Scottish Premiership side were trailing 1-0 to Dyego Sousa's opener when Hearts' Alex Cochrane and Almeria's Rodrigo Ely were sent off. "The decision has been made to abandon the match," the club tweeted. Head coach Robbie Neilson told Hearts TV "all hell broke loose" after Cochrane's challenge. "It was a very competitive game." the Hearts boss added. "Then on the far side there was a tackle from Alex [Cochrane] which I thought was a standard tackle, and then all hell broke loose. "Players were round, there was a forearm smash from their centre-half on Alex, then the ref just totally lost control of it. The benches were over and there was about 60 people on the pitch. "It was a shambles so we just felt it was a pre-season game and we've already got a number of injuries. There was no point carrying on because tensions were extremely high." Almeria tweeted that the referee had suspended the match, but are yet to comment further. Hearts are currently on a domestic break and resume their league campaign against Kilmarnock on 17 December. Neilson's side previously lost 4-0 to friendly opponents Blackburn Rovers while in Spain. "There's always going to be a competitive edge," Neilson said. "But there's a line you can't really cross and I think it was crossed several times. The referee just didn't do a good job of controlling it. "We've got a training session this afternoon for a few of them, then we'll train the next couple of days and come back."
