Whether you're a football fan or just watch TV, odds are you will see a story about a player and some horrendous dive at the weekend. To rugby fans it is just another reason why football is not a 'man's sport', to non sport fans it is just the same old story making the news yet again but to football fans,it is the source of a lot of anger, frustration and if your team were on the receiving end of it, pain. Every fan will have experienced it at some point; a player for the opposition blatantly diving and winning a free kick which they then score from, or a penalty or even just going down dramatically under a challenge from a player with a booking so he is sent off. There is absolutely nothing you can do about it, I mean you're not the ref who foolishly believed the players impression of Tom Daly. Blatant diving has its connoisseurs, for many years we just blamed it on the foreign influence and claimed 'well English lads don't go down that easily', then Ashley Young happened. Over the years the Manchester United winger has had more than his fair share of outrageous dives, but its wrong to say he's the only Englishman to do it. Wayne Rooney, Steven Gerrard, Theo Walcott, they have all done it on occasion which tells us that if seasoned veterans are susceptible to diving, can it ever be stamped out of the game? All we can hope, is that when it happens to your team (and it will) it isn't a penalty in the last few moments which loses you the game, or an attempt at getting your keeper sent off.
A graduate in Sports Journalism from the University of Central Lancashire with a love of all things film, football and American football. Follow me on twitter @mike_oby_92
