FEW would dispute that football referees should penalise players who celebrate too enthusiastically and create the risk of inciting crowd trouble.
But surely the rule was taken to a risible extreme at Wycombe Wanderers on Saturday – when 15-year-old Jordan Ibe was booked for running over to his family and hugging them after scoring a goal.
Some might say that Ibe’s age is immaterial. If he is good enough to play in a grown-ups game, he shouldn’t get special treatment. But the FA is surely now in danger of banning all form of passion from the national game by being so humourlessly rigid.
No one in their right mind could deny a 15-year-old boy a hug with his family after a moment such as this.
Let’s hope the FA now shows the good sense to revoke the booking.
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