For goal-line technology to work so effectively on the world stage i

We often speak of moments when it comes to football. The 90-plus minutes of play are about trends and approach. A lot happens in that span, altering the course of a game. There is an epidemic emerging among onlookers focusing on useless stats, some with meaning but few telling the true story. Its the moments that define a match and decide its fate. Two particular moments Sunday not only defined their respective matches, but also the tournament as a whole. No minute played will ever encapsulate the positive nature of this tournament better than in time added between Switzerland and Ecuador in Brasilia. With the match level at 1-1, the South American side saw weakness in an underperforming Swiss team and nobly was pushing for a winner. Antonio Valencia found space down the right side and played a good ball to Michael Arroyo inside the top of the box. Arroyos touch was heavy and the Ecuadorian hesitated. That moment of indecision gave Swiss central midfielder Valon Behrami time to get stuck in, coming to the rescue with a picture perfect game saving tackle. Behrami, who struggled throughout the match, didnt stop there. He started the counter-attack from inside his own box with purpose, sprinting with the ball down the middle of the field. Behrami was met by a crunching challenge, a clear foul by any standard. Behrami went down but wasnt out. Many players in that situation would have stayed down, waited for the whistle and killed off the match and settle for the point, but not Behrami. The midfielder immediately jumped to his feet and carried on his run. Huge credit goes to the referee, Ravshan Irmatov of Uzbekistan, who refereed a very good match. No moment was better than allowing play to continue after the foul. Advantage earned, advantage given. So many officials in the game are over-anxious, especially when a player goes down, to blow their whistle and halt proceedings. Irmatov read the play, was patient and the game carried on. It was truly expert officiating. Switzerland carried on their move. Within seconds, the ball was played wide right by Behrami. The ball kept moving, with the switch of play on. Ricardo Rodriguez had been flying down the left flank all day long. He was open and he got the ball. Rodriguez took a touch, brought his head up and played a perfect ball to the near post. Substitute Haris Seferovic obliged, making the near-post run, getting on the end of the weighted pass to knock in the winner with seconds to play. It was spectacular football in all phases of the build-up and worthy of the game winning goal on any occasion, let alone in World Cup play. It was excellence personified, from the tackle to the fair play, from the officiating to the counter-attack and the finish. The end result may be harsh on Ecuador. They deserved something from a match well played. A goal in such a manner can only sting so much. It was a defining moment for all thats good and right in the game of football. The second defining moment came between France and Honduras in a rugged, physical match where Honduras was content to kick and hack. The ‘H on their jerseys must stand for hatchet job. It was largely disgraceful. Nevermind the overall quality of the match, it was the moment goal-line technology made its true arrival at the World Cup and signals progressive change, benefiting the game to the highest degree. In the 48th minute and France up 1-0, Karim Benzema broke in and put the ball off the post, rebounding off goalkeeper Noel Valladares before it appeared to cross the goal-line. Benzema celebrated, but was it a goal? In a matter of seconds, referee Emerson De Carvalho pointed to half and the goal was ruled ‘good. De Carvalho was notified immediately of the good goal call and pointed to half. The viewer may have been confused, but there was no indecision by the officiating crew. It took a minute and ten seconds for the video replay to show on the screen. Initial panic on Twitter was complete nonsense, as the first goal-line review showed ‘no goal. Those who were patient enough came to realize the first adjudication had nothing to do with the ball of the post, and that two goal decisions using the technology were needed. The second review came after the ball went off the back of Valladares. By the slimmest of margins, the video showed the ball had crossed the line. The margin for error with the technology is said to be plus- or minus-1.5cm. The ball couldnt have crossed the line by much more than that. But we have to trust the technology. There is no point using it if we dont. Honduras Head Coach Luis Fernandez Suarez unsurprisingly protested. French Head Coach Didier Deschamps tried to explain, but how do you plead for common sense to someone acting irrational? Arguing against goal-line technology is like arguing against gravity: It is nonsensical. The call was right. There is no point arguing. After the protests ceased, the match carried on. It took two minutes, thirty seconds total to go through the process, celebrate and calm emotions. Two minutes, thirty seconds to make sure the call was right. This was no Frank Lampard foot-over-the-line in Bloemfontein we are talking about here. It was mere centimeters. The debate is done. Good goal and we move on. This stands as a watershed moment for FIFA and world soccer. For goal-line technology to work so effectively on the world stage is a testament to progression in the game. It is an overwhelming success and must be instituted in all major leagues, worldwide. It begs the question what else this technology can be used for and how far the game is willing to go with technology. Offside calls? Perhaps thats the next step in the evolution of the game, to get the call right. These were two very different moments, but two tremendously important ones. The World Cup continues to live up to all the hype. There have been 37 goals in 11 matches, the most through this many games since 1958. Three goals or more have been scored in 10 out of the 11 matches played and in the game there were not three goals, two were disallowed that should have stood. The tournament has been spectacular. With moments like these, we can truly call it the beautiful game. Sit back and enjoy. Contact Gareth Wheeler: gareth.wheeler@bellmedia.ca Twitter: @WheelerTSN Cheap Bengals Jerseys Authentic .ca. Hi Mr. Fraser, When I was watching the Heritage Classic in Vancouver there was a play midway through the third where Ottawa crashed the Canucks net and it came off its moorings. Cheap Bengals Jerseys China . -- Patrick Kueng of Switzerland was nearly flawless as he captured his first World Cup and halted Aksel Lund Svindals streak of four straight super-G victories on Saturday. http://www.cheapbengalsjerseyselite.com/. Ellis had a season-high 37 points and two key assists late, Dirk Nowitzki led a fourth-quarter rally with 14 of his 35 points, and the Mavericks spoiled Howards best offensive night in Houston with a 123-120 victory over the Rockets on Wednesday night. Cheap Bengals Jerseys .m. ET, CBSOPENING LINE — Packers by 3RECORD VS. SPREAD — New England 7-4, Green Bay 5-5-1SERIES RECORD — Tied 5-5. Wholesale Bengals Jerseys . -- The Atlanta Braves added to their extensive wave of long-term deals with their young stars on Sunday by agreeing to a $42 million, four-year contract with All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel. SAN JOSE, Calif. -- John McCarthy and Tommy Wingels sent the San Jose Sharks into a nearly three-week Olympic break on a winning note. McCarthy scored his first goal since 2010 and Wingels had the game-winner for the second straight night to help the Sharks beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 3-2 on Friday. "You feel the atmosphere now," San Jose captain Joe Thornton said. "Guys are excited for the break. Its always nice to win before things like this or Christmas. The guys will enjoy the break and come back ready to work for the second half." Patrick Marleau also scored for the Sharks, who won three of four following a three-game losing streak to reach the break in second place in the Pacific Division. Antti Niemi made 19 saves. The Sharks will be a different team when they next play Feb. 28 in Philadelphia, with the expected return of injured players Logan Couture, Raffi Torres, Matt Nieto and Tyler Kennedy. "Were 80 points at the Olympic break," coach Todd McLellan said. "We would have been probably pleased with that at the beginning of the season considering some of the players we lost over and throughout the year. We go into the break satisfied. Coming out of it we have work to do." McLellan also broke Darryl Sutters franchise record by coaching in his 435th game. He already is the franchise leader in wins with 257. Ryan Johansen and Boone Jenner scored for the Blue Jackets, who trail Philadelphia by one point for third place in the Metropolitan Division after losing tight games on consecutive nights in San Jose and Los Angeles. Sergei Bobrovsky made 44 saves. "Obviously, you dont want to go into a break with a loss but we have been playing great hockey the past few games," Johansen said. "The boys battled hard and we just fell a little short." Columbus got worn down in the third against the more-rested Sharks, especially on an extended shift early in the period that led to Wingels goal. With the Blue Jackets unable to change a tiring unit under relentless pressure from San Jose, Wingels knocked in a rebound of Jason Demers shot for his second goal in two games to make it 3-1.dddddddddddd "The third goal was obviously the big one," Columbus coach Todd Richards said. "They had momentum at that point. If its a one-shot lead, its something we can do." Jenner scored midway through the period on Columbus second shot of the third when Johansen set him up following a turnover by Demers. Columbus took advantage of a San Jose turnover to get on the board 18 seconds into the second. Thorntons clearing attempt from the corner was knocked down just inside the blue line by Johansen, who quickly flipped a wrist shot past Niemi before he could react to cut the Sharks lead to 2-1. Bobrovsky, starting on back-to-back nights for the first time since the opening two games of the season, fell into a 2-0 hole less than halfway through the first period. McCarthy, who cleared waivers and was sent to the minors last week, made the most of his opportunity in his return after an injury to Nieto. McCarthy won an offensive zone faceoff against Brandon Dubinsky to start his second shift of the night and went straight toward the net. James Sheppard came up with the loose puck and fired a shot from the faceoff circle that deflected off McCarthys stick and past Bobrovsky for the opening goal. It was McCarthys first since Nov. 6, 2010, against Tampa Bay, ending a drought of 73 games. "Its been a long time and it felt really good to get one," McCarthy said. Marleau struck less than 5 minutes later with his first goal in seven games. Bobrovsky made a sprawling save to rob Brent Burns in front, but the rebound went to Scott Hannan at the point. He fired a slap shot that Marleau deflected for his 23rd goal. The Blue Jackets had their chances in the first period, but Johansen missed the net on an early breakaway and they failed to convert a pair of power-play chances. They also had an apparent goal waved off when Jenner knocked in a rebound with a high stick. NOTES: Referee Mike Hasenfranz left the game with an apparent injury, and the third period was played with only one referee. ... The Sharks lead the NHL with 60 goals in the first period. ... Demers returned to the lineup after missing three games with a lower-body injury. ' ' '