Kyle Lafferty fell to the ground after Aberdeen player Charlie Mulgrew moved his head towards the nose of the Ibrox striker. Glen Loovens took a cynical and potentially career ending swipe at a fellow professional in an off the ball incident. Kyle Lafferty was daft, his actions were without doubt to the detriment of his own reputation, and that of his club, but at the final reckoning, he caused no real harm other than a red card for an opponent. Glenn Loovens was not daft: he very deliberately aimed a stamp at the knee of a player, leaving Mo Edu injured and fortunate that no real lasting damage was caused.
Quite correctly, and by the letter of the law, both players have been in front of a disciplinary committee. Lafferty can have no real complaints about his two match ban; his actions were not those we expect and demand from a Rangers player and while the club have censured the player already, the ban is a clear indication that simulation is not to be tolerated in the game of football. What is cause for concern is the fact that Lafferty's two game ban was announced after Loovens had learned his own fate. The Dutch centre half had earlier been handed just a single match ban for his despicable challenge.
The idea of removing cheating, including simulation, from football is a noble one. It is an ideal that should appeal to every supporter of every club in the land. Lafferty's ban was fair and just, it punished the player adequately and left no doubt that simulation will not be tolerated. The paltry single match ban handed to a man who had physically assaulted a fellow player, leaving him injured, sent out a clear message that if you want to cheat in the game of football, don't dive for a penalty, don't simulate injury to remove an opponent from play, simply take the direct route and hobble your intended victim and make sure the referee does not see it. The punishment meted out for dangerous play is half that for diving.
For many a year in the footballing backwater that is Scotland we have bemoaned the lack of intelligent, graceful football, we have looked at other more technical leagues with eyes green with envy and wished for a day when the entertainment offered up by our domestic league was influenced more by touch and vision than fitness and aggression. This pathetic punishment has signalled for me an end to even dreaming of a day when gifted players are afforded some protection from hatchet-men and thugs with studs. The football on offer will not improve while assault is seen as less of a crime than a dive, and we have no right to complain about it in the future if diabolical decisions like this are allowed to continue unquestioned.