Handball-gate (cont'd)

Another thought on the fallout from the World Cup qualifier match between France and Ireland that was decided on a handball goal. France captain Thierry Henry has come out in support of a replay of the game in light of his handball.

FIFA, soccer's governing body, has nixed the idea of a replay, and the game's result - and the handball goal - will stand. This is the right move by FIFA. They cannot set the precedent that games can just be replayed well after the fact in light of a bad call.

Furthermore, a replay of the game was never a valid solution, which is exactly why Henry was able to come out in support of a replay. I'm not trying to doubt Henry's integrity (plenty of others are doing that), and I'm sure part of him feels a little bad about how France got the game-winning and World Cup berth-clinching goal. But the only reason any player on any competitive professional team would say something like this is because he knows there's no possibility of it actually happening. He only said that because he knew a replay was never an option.

If there was a precedent of games being replayed after ending under these types of circumstances, and a replay could have potentially happened, do you really believe anyone affiliated with France soccer would want to replay the game? Hell no!

They might not like how they won their spot, but I doubt the guilt would be enough to make them withdrawal from competition so the Irish could have a berth in the World Cup in 2010.

So while Henry certainly isn't a cheat like many claimed him to be, let's hesitate from championing him as an icon of integrity for supporting the concept of replaying the game.