Man Utd’s Wayne Rooney is Banned for 2 Matches for Swearing at the TV
The Manchester United player Wayne Rooney has been banned for 2 matches for a swearing rant at a TV camera during a game at the weekend. This ban will include the FA Cup semi-final against Manchester City.
Manchester United appealed against the length Rooney’s ban, calling it excessive, but they failed to overturn the decision.
In a statement Rooney said “I am not the first player to have sworn on TV and I won’t be the last. Unlike others who have been caught swearing on camera, I apologised immediately and yet I am the only person banned for swearing. That doesn’t seem right.”
The ban comes after he scored a hat-trick against West Ham at the weekend, celebrating one goal with an expletive laden rant at the camera, complete with angry scowl.
In Rooney’s defence Man Utd cited that the outburst was a mixture of elation, frustration and anger at the abuse chanted by the home supporters.
Editors Opinion: For me, it raises an interesting point about the behaviour of football fans on the terraces. Now, there is no excuse for Rooney’s behaviour, but there is no doubt about the amount of abuse that every successful player receives from opposition supporters during a football match. You just have to go to a live game to witness it, or even watch some of the crowd shots on the TV broadcast, people who couldn’t be nicer during the week suddenly have their faces twisted into hatred as they hurl abuse at the oppositions players. Children of course, follow their fathers lead, joining in with the hand signals that are anything but complementary. Yet if you confronted any of these people afterwards they would say “It’s just part of the game”, “It’s just a bit of fun”. Why? What makes normally sane people become foul mouthed monsters on a Saturday afternoon?
Photo: jubiz
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