IN the 1950s my football heroes were men of stature and respect such as Sir Stanley Matthews, Nat Lofthouse, Billy Wright and, closer to home, Vic Metcalf.

They were idolised by schoolboys everywhere, but sadly, try as I might to emulate them, as a footballer I was hopeless

Last week I watched a match between Tottenham and Chelsea. The referee awarded a goal for a ball that never went near the goal line.

A player who was tripped by a defender was wrongly booked for diving – this is like getting mugged and then being fined for being a victim.

In another game a Manchester City player made three atrocious tackles, all of which could have seriously crippled his opponent. All these incidents were being replayed, dissected and debated before millions of TV viewers in a matter of seconds.

I cannot for the life of me believe that my boyhood heroes would not have sportingly made some appeal to the referee that he had got it wrong.

Not today’s ‘superstars’. Although well aware that there had never been a goal they ran around shrieking like a bunch of Wags who had bought a new handbag.

The players who had fouled their opponents either walked or strutted away and left the innocent victims to pay the price of their actions.

Such is the level of ‘sportsmanship’ in today’s national game.

What fine examples they are to inspire present and future generations of players to ape their standards and behaviour.

The men overseeing our national game seem not to care about the direction the game is going or the complete absence of any form of sportsmanship on the field, as long as the money rolls in, eh lads?

The pace of today’s game leaves referees and linesmen struggling to cope. They do their honest best but they need help. The FA and Sepp Blatter sit on their thrones in Canute-like impotence while the sea of dross, petulance and sometimes downright malice rises around them unchecked.

If TV can replay, analyse and offer accuracy, truth and honesty to decisions it is time to bring it in now, not later, when TV football audiences hundreds of miles from incidents are better informed than match officials and have become disillusioned with the weekly pantomime dames and drama queens and turned off.

John Langford

Lepton

Stop complaining

HEADTEACHER Carol Gormley gets my vote. Children when attending school are expected to bring a small range of items which allows them to make notes and take part in class.

Pupils who do not bring said set items to school reduce the learning time of others who do. To issue those missing items takes time and then, of course, there is the time taken to get those items returned which can turn into a battle. This reduces the learning time of those who have brought the correct basic equipment.

Parents whose children have fallen foul of equipment checks can have no room for complaint.

The rules and regulations are quite simple but it would appear not simple enough for some.

Without this basic equipment how do parents expect their child to take part in lessons?

Simple question or is it someone else’s problem and the rules do apply to us. Parents should be checking their children have the necessary equipment and instilling into them the need to be more responsible.

Part of the trouble is that society has gone soft and can find an excuse for anything. Rules and regulations apply to others, not us.

You only have to look at that other bone of contention – parents taking their children out of school term to go on holiday for the cheaper rates. What would happen if teachers had this same mindset?

Finally, I wonder how many of those children who had to do detention forgot to take their mobile phone to school? Makes you wonder about priorities and what their parents do teach their offspring? Keep it up Mrs Gormley, you are going in the right direction.

R J Bray

Shelley

Sorry state of affairs

I FIND it quite worrying that so many pupils at Colne Valley High School turn up so regularly minus even the most basic of equipment even though they have been previously warned of the consequences of doing so and thus making it more difficult to teach.

I know this to be true being an ex-teacher myself.

Many children would turn up on the first day after a holiday without pencil case, pumps, PE kit etc, saying their mums hadn’t had time to wash the kit or replace it over the holidays.

However, what I find much more worrying is the fact that many parents have refused to back the school up by actually telling their children not to attend the detention.

How can teachers gain respect and discipline when parents are effectively giving their children the green light to ignore school rules?

Unfortunately, it means the parents have no respect for the teachers either. What a sorry state of affairs!

Have any of these parents ever wondered ‘what is society coming to these days?’

If they have, may I suggest they could do worse than beginning to looking at themselves.

Carole Scott

Golcar

You were warned!

I TOTALLY agree with headteacher Carol Gormley.

Obviously the parents are not making sure their children are fully equipped, especially when they had been notified during the Easter break.

Although it is inconvenient for some there is really no comeback if you have been told about it.

Joan Hollingworth

Huddersfield

Danger detention

ISN’T it rather irresponsible for a school to detain a child out of school hours for the ‘offence’ of forgetting an item like a pencil sharpener.

What would the school’s reaction be if a child was involved in an accident – or worse – after having to make their own way home?

Give your heads a shake out there.

BRIAN LAWRENCE

Golcar

Small rules count

REGARDING the story over the Colne Valley headteacher and the so-called ‘Rulergate’ detentions for forgetting rulers, pencils and sharpeners.

Many years ago I was speaking to a teacher about what I thought were the petty rules we had when we went to school, such as not eating in the street or going into shops in uniform and not wearing it in the correct manner, always going downstairs on a bus so that we could give up a seat for any older person standing and many more ‘in school’ rules (having the right equipment one of them).

After telling him these things he replied all those so-called petty rules were the basis for self discipline and good manners in adult life and he was right.

Fast forward a few years to when the ‘Rulergate’ pupils are in work.

Will they expect their bosses to ignore tools that are left at home so they cannot do the work they are paid for and will their parents still say they have not to work over to make up for their mistake?

MRS N CLARKE

Almondbury

Rare hospital stay

I HAVE recently had my first stay in Huddersfield Royal Infirmary at the age of 89!

My only other experience was in an RAF hospital in Palestine during the Second World War.

I would like to thank everyone on the Medical Assessment Unit and Ward 5.

The doctors, nurses, domestics all looked after me very well.

I enjoyed my food so thank you to everyone concerned with making nice meals.

Roy Singleton

Crosland Moor

Misleading leaflet?

THE local election campaign is only a few days old and we are already confronted with half-truths and worse.

Trust the local Tories to try and hoodwink voters and pull the wool over our eyes – and, in the process, treat us all like fools!

Here in Holme Valley South a Conservative leaflet is now being circulated which beggars belief.

The leaflet states: “We want you to have your say in a referendum on May 3rd’’ – referring to the splitting up of Kirklees.

There is NO referendum on May 3.

Devolving decision-making to as local a level as possible is a worthy aim in areas where it can be effective, but efficient and effective public services in such areas as refuse collection and schools cannot be delivered in the same way.

The Tory argument for splitting Kirklees totally fails to mention that a key element of their so-called plan is to actually extend Kirklees by bringing in parts of Calderdale – giving us the possible lunacy of services here in the Holme Valley being run from Halifax. It also fails to mention the millions which would be wasted on an unnecessary reorganisation. The Tories have done it in the NHS – is it local government’s turn next?

It’s hard to believe but it actually gets worse. The Tories are ‘opposing plans to concrete over our open land and countryside.’

Are these the same Tories that in the last few weeks have, nationally, agreed to what is being called a developers’ free-for-all where all local decisions are presumed to favour the developer?

How does any of this protect our green belt? Maybe our local Tories are blissfully unaware what their national leaders are signing them up to.

The leaflet goes on to a jaw dropping statement that the Tories are ‘protecting public services’ – yes, the same Tories that are cutting funding for education, social care, libraries, transport and many services for families.

Holme Valley South Tories are clearly desperate but can this ever excuse such a despicable apology for election literature?

Stewart V. Thompson

Scholes