Shaken by the 'Hand of God'

In the sanitised, PR-driven, politically correct world of modern football, Terry Butcher stands out like an icon of sanity.

The Scotland assistant manager caused controversy this week when he refused to shake Diego Maradona's hand.

Butcher, a central figure for England back in 1980s and early 1990s, was at the heart of defence during the World Cup quarter-final which included the infamous 'Hand of God'.

And while it would have been easier for him to bury the hatchet and jump aboard the Maradona bandwagon that rolled into Scotland this week, he decided to stick to his principles instead.

The most notorious handball in the history of football may have taken place over 20 years ago. But being cheated out of a place in a World Cup semi-final is not something Butcher feels capable of simply forgetting.

I admire Butcher for not being afraid to stand by his convictions.

What Maradona did back then may not have been a crime against humanity. But the fact that he never apologised for cheating, but instead tried to dress it up as an act of divine intervention was utterly repulsive.

So why should Butcher act as if nothing had happened?

To make matters worse, during his press conference in Scotland, Maradona tried to compare his handball with the fact that England's third goal in 1966 World Cup final probably didn't cross the line.

How can you possibly compare a deliberate act of cheating with a short-sighted linesman's decision? It was a pathetic comparison, and proves Maradona is now a deluded victim of his own hype.

The icing on the cake was the reaction of the Scottish to the Argentinian's visit. I appreciate the little man has a history with Scotland, having made his debut and scored his first international goal there. And now fate brought him back there for his first match as national coach.

But the welcome he got was entirely disproportionate and, to a large extent, based on the fact that Maradona had cheated England all those years ago.

Scotland opened its arms to the man, partly as one of the greatest footballers who ever lived, but mostly as the man who had got one over on the old enemy. There were even banners welcoming the 'Hand of God' to Scotland.

I realise there is no love lost between the countries north and south of Hadrian's Wall. And I appreciate that the football rivalry between the two countries is intense and passionate.

But celebrating the fact that your greatest rival was once cheated out of a football tournament? That's pretty low.

In the past I have always supported Scotland in any match other than against England. I always hoped they would qualify for major tournaments. And I was on the edge of my seat when they nearly made it to Euro 2008.

But they can forget about the goodwill of millions of England fans now they have shown themselves to be so astonishingly petty.

Scotland and Maradona are a match made in heaven. They are welcome to each other.

An absence of pride

There once was a time when pulling on a England shirt was the ultimate honour.

I was reading Sir Bobby Robson's biography recently and he nostalgically recalled days when receiving the call from your country was enough to bring tears to your eyes.

You didn't get paid very much for playing for the Three Lions back then. There were no fancy hotels or Armani team suits. And you had to make your own way to Wembley and back - often by bus.

But, despite the lack of benefits and personal reward, a player would crawl over broken glass for the chance to represent England.

Fast forward to the present day and this week's friendly match against Germany was a prime example of how little it means to modern stars. Fabio Capello was forced to do without several, most actually, of his first choice players.

Sure, some of them were genuinely injured. But I can bet you a few of those who stayed home would have turned out for their clubs if they had a crucial Champions League tie on the same night.

I realise it was only a friendly, but it was against Germany. Has playing for your country now become little more than an irritant? Something to get out of if at all possible?

Luckily for Capello and for England, the team he did manage to put out on Wednesday did the business handsomely. The young pretenders - less tainted by the trappings of fame and fortune - proved they are ready, willing and able to step up.

Heck, even Stuart Downing, who normally struggles to reach the heights of mediocrity, played well.

Now some of the bigger names must be genuinely worried about whether or not they will get their places back when they return to 'full fitness'.

Then watch how they suddenly care about playing for their country - when their market value and contract negotiating power diminishes as they become known as ex-internationals.

Drogba's lucky escape

I received this reply to my column posted on the timesofmalta.com website:

"James Calvert confirms for the umpteenth time he is one of the jealous anti-Chelsea brigade in his over-the-top, puritanical attack on Didier Drogba. In football, like in life, it takes two to tango and if the fans behave like hooligans towards the players, the players can't always be expected to be gentlemen and not respond." Anthony Calleja

The reason I am copying this here is that I think it deserves a response. I am not, for one second, a member of any "jealous, anti-Chelsea brigade". In fact, just for the record, back in August I wrote in this very column that I believe the title will be going to Stamford Bridge this season. And deservedly so.

What I wrote about Drogba I wrote because of what he did, not who he plays for. And my sentiments would have been just the same if it had been Wayne Rooney, Fernando Torres or Cesc Fabregas doing the throwing.

My comments were not aimed at Chelsea in the slightest but merely at a player who had committed an act of retaliation that is simply unacceptable. I couldn't care less whose colours he was wearing at the time.

As I made extremely clear in the original piece, the behaviour of the fan was totally out of order and he or she deserves to have the book thrown at them if they are caught. But the behaviour of Drogba was equally reproachable. In my mind he got off very lightly with a three-match ban.

While it is certainly true that players should never have to put up with this sort of provocation, it is also true that their vast salaries and privileged positions in society demands they set the right example to those who idolise them.

Rising above provocation and not lowering themselves to the level of common hooligans are key parts of that example setting.

Drogba, irrelevant of who he is playing for, failed in that most basic of duties.

Delap's Olympic dream

It seems interest in the Rory Delap super throw-in just won't die down.

The Stoke City midfielder's ability to launch the ball straight into the penalty box from most areas of the pitch has attracted interest from a very unlikely source - the Irish Olympic committee.

They are, apparently, considering the possibility of calling up Delap to represent his country at the Olympics in the javelin competition. Delap is a little surprised but not entirely against the idea.

"They must be pretty desperate if they are scraping the barrel for me. I represented the country, so I was decent at it, but I don't know if I am Olympic standard," he said.

If Delap does make it to the Olympics, he could be joined by a few other football stars. Theo Walcott has got to be a good bet for sprint events, Peter Crouch would sail through the high jump and Andy Johnson would be a medal certainty in the diving...

sportscolumnist@timesofmalta.com