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Maui Sun, sand and surf, this tropical island paradise is something everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime. The Hawaiian Islands have it all and the island of Maui has it in spades. Maui is the perfect place for a vacation, the perfect place for a honeymoon, and the perfect place for a wedding. What could be more romantic, exotic, and exciting than a beautiful Maui wedding? In fact, with the costs of destination weddings dropping steadily, many couples are choosing to travel to this beautiful island specifically to get married in this amazing tropical location. Maui weddings are as breathtakingly romantic and astounding as anyone could ever hope their wedding could be and they’re much more affordable than you might think.

Should you choose to have your wedding in this fun and exciting location, the first thing you want to do is search for a Maui travel package. The price of travel and hotel accommodations may surprise you once you start looking into them. Contact a travel agent to see what kind of a package deal you can get on air travel and hotel rates. Booking your airfare and hotel stay together this way is bound to save you money as compared to purchasing them separately. All too often people will find what they think is a great price on a hotel room only to find that they can’t afford the airfare, and vice versa. Using a travel agent to book them together can save you a considerable percentage. Remember that booking far in advance will usually get you the best rates and that you’re always going to get a better price during the off season.

Once you have the hotel and travel arrangements out of the way, it’s time to start planning the actual wedding. Maui has become such a popular destination for weddings that several companies that specialize in planning Maui weddings have popped up all over the island. Most of these companies offer to hold ceremonies in a number of uniquely beautiful Maui locations. The majority of them also have web sites that detail the wedding packages that they have to offer. These packages include things like the wedding cake, photography, a minister or other official to perform the ceremony, and a number of other wedding related details. Some will even make an appointment with the state’s marriage licensing department so you can obtain your marriage license. The cost of the Maui wedding packages vary, of course, depending on the company making the offer and exactly what you want to include. Most of the prepared packages range in price from about three hundred dollars for the most basic to nearly three thousand dollars for the most exquisite.

A beautiful and romantic Maui wedding is definitely within your reach. By choosing to marry in such an exotic and romantic location you are basically guaranteeing yourself a wedding ceremony that you will remember fondly forever and promising yourself a wedding experience that you may have thought could only happen in your dreams.

About the Author

This article provided courtesy of http://www.wedding-answers.com

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THE ENCHANTED SELF® teaches you how to access positive states of well being again and again. These positive states are unique to you and often reflect your interests, talents, and potential. I thought it would be fun to finally share with you some activities useful in helping you get in touch with your Enchanted Self. I hope you enjoy them and will let me know how they worked out by writing to me at encself@aol.com.

1. Relax and let your mind drift backward in time. Give yourself permission to drift back through your memory to a younger age. Let your intuition be your guide in choosing an appropriate age. Once you have chosen an age, imagine yourself in a room in one of the homes of your childhood. Look at the furniture, the colors of the room. Can you smell anything, any aromas of food cooking, or any other odors? Can you hear any noises, perhaps people talking? Is the television on? What show might be on? Can you look out the window from where you’re sitting? What do you see?

Jot down all the positive thoughts and feelings that you associate with this memory on a piece of paper. Then make a list of all the talents and positive capacities you had as a child. Thank about how you could link your positive traits from the past forward to your present life.

Don’t get discouraged if you need to make changes in your present life. Changes can be positive, and there is always a way that you can successfully change, even if it is a little bit at a time.

2. Next, let’s do an exercise geared to building your self-esteem, a necessary attribute to your Enchanted Self. Think about five positive statements that you can make about yourself. For example, you might say, “I am a most courteous and helpful person,” or “I am always there for others, or “I can be trusted.”

Later on today, write down your five positive remarks about yourself. Put this piece of paper in your wallet or in your pocketbook. Read it to yourself at least once a day, for a period of one week. After a week, give yourself a mental hug, or some other form of congratulations, to emphasize to yourself how great it is that you have these positive traits. We all need practice in confirming what is good about ourselves. Seeing yourself in a positive light is a critical step in living a life of Enchantment.

Some of our best pathways for enchantment come from the hopes and dreams that we had as children. Relax, and let your mind wander back to a time in your life when you were eager and excited about life. For example, perhaps you were a Brownie or a Cub Scout, and you imagined yourself becoming a Girl or Boy Scout some day, winning every Scout badge possible. Or maybe, because you like nature, you often imagined yourself climbing high in the trees. You may never have actually done these things, yet now you can still remember the good feelings that you had either actually doing, or thinking, about these things.

Rather than holding on to the disappointment or anger that may have come from unrealized dreams, think about three things that you can do as an adult that could result in your having some of these same positive feelings.

For example, perhaps a course in rock-climbing might help you get back in touch with the fearlessness you felt as a child when you imagined yourself climbing tall trees. Or perhaps it is now time for you to sharpen your skill at some sort of craft, and enter a competition. Or maybe its just time to order a gourmet-cooking magazine, and to have the pleasure of looking at someone else’s recipes.

As adults, we don’t always need to be a winner. It’s enough just to enjoy a hobby or an interest. One of the gifts of Enchantment is that you can make a variety of decisions about yourself, sometime choosing to be highly competitive, while at other times you may choose to be a spectator.

Whether you relax by blowing bubbles, or by wishing on a star, fishing, or roller skating, the magical yet obtainable ingredients of Enchantment lie within each of us, waiting for you to practice them an to apply them, again and again. Give yourself permission to feel good again, by recognizing the true strengths and value you have as a unique human being. Welcome to your Enchanted Self!

About the Author

Dr. Barbara Becker Holstein , originator of THE ENCHANTED SELF®, a method of bringing delight and meaning into everyday living, invites you to view her new line of ENCHANTED WOMAN products, downloadable e-books, and free gifts at http://www.enchantedself.com. Chat with others in Dr. Holstein’s e-group, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/encself/join, and sign up for her free e-group at www.enchantedself.com. Order her book, THE ENCHANTED SELF: A Positive Therapy, or the CD-rom or tape version and her book RECIPES FOR ENCHANTMENT: The Secret Ingredient is YOU!, or the ED-rom version, at http://www.enchantedself.com/ordering.htm

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So, you have decided that you are interested in the niche of forex trading. Now, all you need to do is determine which is the best forex strategy possible. My advice is to provide yourself plenty of time to do some research so that you can find the best system.

If you have determined that you want to break into the forex trading market, there are a few things you will definitely need to consider first. If you are thoughtful about your decision and you truly desire to get a forex course, then you need to take these steps.

As a child, my father had this saying, “You know, there’s more than one way to skin a cat.” What he had in mind would take me a few years to figure out. But now I understand; especially since I make the better part of my living doing forex online. So just what is that you say? Well, in short, automated forex is the way of operating your foreign exchange currency, or forex, account on automatic.

There are numerous ways that you can school yourself about forex trading. One of the best ways you can educate yourself on the topic is to have a tutor of sorts. If you happen to know someone who is knowledgeable in automated forex, then you may want to ask him or her if they would be inclined to help you learn online forex. If having a private instructor is not an alternative for you, then you will want to either purchase or download a course, or open a practice account and begin practicing trading in a simulated forex trading market.

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In case you don’t know about betting hall betting, then read on…

casino avec bonus sans depot

By common definition a gaming hall is a structure that offers card playing. Customers can take a wager handling slot-machines or plenty of other games of chance. Betting saloon games commonly include methodically derived balances built in that promise the betting organization reserves dominion above the gaming fans. A legion of betting house games can result in you becoming far too infatuated swiftly. By way of illustration take the good old 1-armed-bandit, a cash operated instrument with 3 plus cogs which pirouette if a bar on its side is pulled. This machine frequently settles corresponding with a combination of images seen on the front of the machine. Regrettably, gaming hall games strive to create the mirage of influence, thereby hoodwinking the betting fan — the punter is given over options, but these do not realistically eliminate the player’s negative odds. That is induced by the betting establishment never refunding the full sum as expected. This systematic arrangement is often noticeable in well-known casino games such as blind poker, dice games, roulette or blackjack.

Seven-card stud is indisputably an immensely popular casino pastime. The betting enthusiasts, holding fully obscured hands, are betting in the pot which is then given to the last participant owning the winning set of cards. (As everybody knows, the bluffing hand may actually win too!) Comparable to seven card stud poker, blackjack is also an incredibly fashionable casino game. A sizeable amount of its fame is thanks to the mix of chance and knowledge and choice making, not to forget a routine termed card counting. This is a sophisticated strategy by which gambling enthusiasts are in a position to turn the winning odds of the card game for their own ends by both betting & strategic actions in correspondence with the hands dealt. “Craps” is a well known wagering game where people may place bets on the roll of two dice. Guests bet on the result of 1 spin, or on a string of spins on two dice. In contrast to blackjack, there is no proven bona fide killer system you could apply to boost the chances. Roulette is another incredibly popular pastime — a croupier revolves a roulette wheel featuring a set of precisely 37 (classical roulette) or thirty-eight (Vegas roulette) distinctively tagged slots in which a rolling ball will settle, which marks the final winning number When a player happens to bet on a specific number which wins so they’ve got a lucky hand, the premium is going to be thirty five to one, the initial bet itself will be rebated. Indeed in total it is multiplied by 36.

We strongly recommend you be emphatically watchful for such gaming establishment betting games are generally deemed undoubtedly addiction forming. Copious lives have been ruined due to gambling & albeit it seems like a lot of fun, do your best to moderate your play.

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The Hawaii Ironman grew from very humble beginnings. Really not much more than a few friends discussing who was the better athlete—a runner, a biker or a swimmer.

A suggestion was made that a race be invented that included all three elements. That day, an event was born that would change the landscape of sporting history.

What started as a 2.4 Waikiki rough water swim, a bike race around the island, followed by the Honolulu marathon gave birth to mult-event races that had never before existed.

Even races such as the Eco-challenge originated from that small gathering of friends. Little did they know that the race would one day move to Kona on the big island and explode into prominence in 1982 when ABC television covered the race. Television viewers were enthralled when Julie Moss collapsed in sight of Kona and then again feet from the finish line.

Who would have believed back then that the triathlon would find prominence as an olympic event that draws athletes from countries around the world.

How could they possibly imagine that pros would be racing for huge prize money and that amateurs from every corner of the earth would challenge the Ironman distance, forever changing their lives for the better when they realized their dream of crossing that distant finish line.

The amazing thing is, there seems to be no end in sight. Races are filling in record time year after year as individuals from all walks of life are “Ironstruck” and hear the call of the Iron Gods drawing them to this incredible event.

If you are considering challenging the Ironman for the first time, I sincerely hope you do it. Everyone I know who has reached the Ironman finish line has seen it as a life-altering experience. There are countless Ironman race-day stories that are shared by those who have been there.

Some are satisfied to finish one race, but there are also those who return year after year to feel that special Ironman bond that can only be experienced by taking part in the frenetic, sometimes terrifying mass swim start, a long bike ride full of climbs and near-misses and harrowing downhill curves and a marathon that will test the will, spirit and courage of everyone who takes on this challenge.

All this thanks to a few friends who had an idea that turned into one of the worlds most amazing sporting events that gives the ordinary person the opportunity to accomplish something very, very special.

My name is Ray and I’m a veteran of 14 Ironman triathlons and numerous other endurance events.

I’ve built a site called “Ironstruck” that is full of training and racing tips that I hope will help you reach the finish line of your Ironman race.

My site address is http://triathlon-ironman-myfirstironman-ironstruck.com

I would also like to hear about your Ironman plans and what country you represent.

Feel free to contact me with comments or questions at…….

http://triathlon-ironman-myfirstironman-ironstruck.com

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Back in August, just prior to the opening games of the 2005/06 football season, the predictions team here at “Tipped at the Post!”, bravely gave our forecasts for all 92 teams and it would be remiss of us if we didn’t analyse how we got on – if only to allow you all to disregard our tips next season! At the top end of the Barclays Premiership we wrote: “Obviously the big 3 will fight it out again; with a good start required by Arsenal – and perhaps more significantly Man Utd; to enable them to push Chelsea right up to the finish. If the trio are still close coming into the final quarter, then we’ve a sneaking feeling United could just edge it; but if they leave it too late then it’s impossible to see beyond the Blues.

Martin Jol has been patiently putting together a young, but very strong squad and we’d expect them to battle with Liverpool for that 4th spot.” Well, we have to be reasonably pleased with that; as United were the closest to Chelsea and may, with a little more consistency earlier on, have got much closer. Spurs did indeed battle it out all season for 4th spot, but we got the Gunners and the Merseysiders back to front. Another good spot by us was Blackburn who finished 6th; we wrote: “Craig Bellamy could either fire Rovers to a cracking season, or possibly spark more trouble; but we favour the former and see a top half finish for them.” Of promoted Sunderland we suggested: “they will do well to simply avoid the drop and their home form will be vital in securing a second season.” Waiting until the final fixture of the season for their first win confirmed this! We did expect Bryan Robson’s Baggies to perhaps be able to take the next step and prove harder to beat, allowing them to stay just out of trouble, but we were correct again with their West Midlands neighbours.

We wrote: “Aston Villa however, could be in for an uncomfortable time. They should be too strong to go down, but we can see them being involved at the wrong end of the table.” Just about spot on with that one! We totally underestimated Wigan, but we certainly weren’t alone there, and expected better of Man City and Birmingham, with Charlton and Bolton struggling a little more; but on the whole we have to be fairly pleased with the Premiership!

In the Championship we wrote: “The team we have a firm fancy for are Leeds United; who after a season of consolidation, now appear to be ready to mount a big promotion push.” Well they didn’t prove quite as strong as we thought but still made the play-offs. Many highly rated tipsters had Wolves and Southampton as the 2 to go up; our thoughts were: “Many people’s favourites are Wolves, after their long unbeaten run after xmas, but there is always immense pressure at Molineux when expectation levels are high and we see their only route up being via the play-offs. Of the relegated clubs, we can see both Norwich and Crystal Palace being right up there, but Southampton may well suffer – just like many before them who’ve dropped out of the Premiership after a long stay – and need a season or two to adjust.” Again just about spot on, with Saints spending all season in the bottom half and Wolves again flattering to deceive and just missing out. Palace were right up there, but Norwich failed miserably. Ipswich lost in the play-offs the previous season and of them we wrote: “they may well have missed the boat and could find life a lot harder, having lost several key players.” A bottom half finish would suggest we were correct! We had Reading in the play-offs, so underestimated them, a we did with Watford, although we did write that we expected them to be well clear of danger, under their bright new Manager – he proved to be even better than we thought! On the whole though, not so good from us!

Of Coca-Cola League One our feelings were for Huddersfield Town to be the strongest side, unfortunately there were 3 or 4 stronger. We had Brentford, Bristol City and Oldham in the play-offs and the latter 2 only just missed out. Nott’m F were many people’s clear favourites to go straight back up. We wrote: “This can only be because of their successes in the distant past, because we simply cannot see their current squad being anywhere good enough. They will be the “big fish” everybody wants to beat and Gary Megson will need to bring in some experience to counter this, otherwise a young team could well be struggling towards the other end of the table.” This was indeed the case until the Manager parted company and they embarked on a run which should have taken them to the play-offs, but they bottled it right at the death. Of Champions Southend we wrote: “they will do very well to hang onto highly promising striker Freddie Eastwood and without him they may well be in trouble.” Well they did hang on to him, he finished top scorer, so in a way we feel justified in our comment. The one big spot we came up with was Swindon. We predicted: “They are the one team who we feel that may struggle more than expected , although they were close to promotion only 2 years ago, they have badly fallen away and could well slip into League 2 this time.” They had a bad start and never recovered. So some decent forecasts, with no major slip up’s, I think we can call League One’s predictions a reasonable success.

As usual League two was the most difficult to call, but we had some success. We wrote: “Northampton were our tip last year, but never got going, but they have added some experience to a solid squad and could put it right this time. Lincoln are this division’s Bristol City; having missed out repeatedly over recent seasons. Maybe this time they can avoid the pain of the play-offs and go straight up. To accompany them we like the look of Wycombe, who finished very strongly last term.” Well, the Cobblers did go up and the other 2 made the play-offs. We also stated: “Leyton Orient may well be the dark horses in their rebuilt stadium and Paul Simpson’s Carlisle should be ok and may well compete towards the top with a genuine challenge.” They both made automatic promotion, so we have to get a tick for those! I think, bearing in mind the difficulties with this division, we did very well and on the whole I think we can be quite satisfied with our overall predictions. It’s up to you if you listen to us next time, but we will be back in August putting our head on the block once more!

Mick Burrows writes for “Tipped at the Post!, the regular newsletter of http://www.fixed-odds-in-focus.com

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Outright Odds: 40/1
Group D Winners: 13/8

As per usual, Mexico, ranked in the World’s top 10, had an impossibly easy qualifying path to the finals in Germany. After hammering Dominica 18-0 across two legs, they won all six matches in Stage Two of qualifying in a group which contained fellow qualifiers Trinidad & Tobago and football heavyweights St Vincent / Grenadines and St Kitts and Nevis.

The final group saw them lose two matches, away to the United States to whom they finished the group as runners up on goal difference and their final match at Trinidad & Tobago. They did however, net 22 goals in the process, making them the group’s top goal scorers overall.

Those two defeats within 90 minutes were the first endured under manager Ricardo La Volpe since he took over in October 2003, with his side beating Brazil 1-0 in the Confederations Cup and also taking both Germany and Argentina into extra time. No matter how easy a passage into the finals Mexico may have had, there is no denying they can mix it with the “big boys” when the occasion arises.

They have appeared in 12 World Cups and reached the quarter final stages in both 1970 and 1986 when the tournament was held on home soil. However, they haven’t faired so well in recent finals, suffering a 2-0 second round defeat by rivals the United States in 2002 and bowing out 2-1 at the same stage to Germany in 1998.

Following a not-too-taxing qualifying process, they will be delighted at being seeded and being placed in arguably the weakest group of the tournament. They should have no problem qualifying for the second round and Lavolpe’s coveted 3-5-2 formation should serve him well in the opening stage.

The formation is used to benefit striker Jared Borgetti, who plundered 14 goals through the qualifying campaign while Jaime Lorenzo struck 11 times from midfield.

However, ironically what used to be the team’s main strength could now be a major weakness. Borgetti has flopped at Bolton Wanderers and is just a bit-part player while fiery striker Cuahtemoc Blanco may not even feature in the finals squad.

Where Mexico do boast a genuine world-class player is holding player Rafael Marquez, who plays just in front of the defence for both club – Catalan giants Barcelona and his country. Goalkeeper Oswaldo Sanchez is in the form of his life too so while Mexico may not be the force in attack they used to be, they will certainly be a tough nut to crack.

Recommended Bet:
Being seeded in such a weak group means there is no value in backing Mexico to qualify for the second round. They don’t play fellow seeds Portugal until the final round of fixtures and if both sides have already made it to the last 16 by then, a draw could be on the cards.

Portugal vs Mexico draw @ 5/2

David Walker runs a free World Cup bets website and written World Cup previews. A free 45-page World Cup guide is available from the website and features a “free World Cup football shirt” offer.

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As companies that conduct their business online have proliferated, hosting of those websites that provide the primary point of contact for transaction of business has become highly mission critical; having these sites go offline or perform poorly not only loses revenue but also detracts from the company’s image and loses customer loyalty.

Companies such as betting and online gaming have even more stringent requirements because they need to provide a guaranteed response in near real time. Sports betting events also have the effect of crowding all the business within condensed time windows.

This level of hosting goes far beyond the simple provision of bandwidth and the quality of the server matters not only in terms of its CPU’s processing abilities, quantity of RAM and hard disk space but also the durability of its components, the power supply available and the ability of fan/s to disperse the heat generated by a server running 24/7 under possibly very heavy loads.

With an application designed for use internally within a company, one can always put a cap on the maximum number of people that could be using the application. With the internet this number can be unpredictable, or if measurable through registration, can grow large very quickly. The internet is a new operating regime, not only in terms of the security issues it presents but also in the scale of operations, and this requires a new way of thinking when designing applications and the hardware architectures that host them.

The traditional approach is to scale up vertically, increasing the bandwidth, CPU/s’ speeds, memory and so forth. There is a limit, however, to how far this can be taken and with so much depending on such a concentration of resources, a failure is nothing less than catastrophic. The answer is to achieve scalability horizontally with a distributed architecture. This architecture not only allows increased scalability, but also creates reliance to faults and failures within the system. What’s more, this model is inherently suitable to most operations and services offered over the internet which are in themselves quite simple, but that there is just too many of them.

This situation is akin to how humans organize themselves to accomplish very large workloads; there comes a time when one person, no matter how hardworking and clever will not be able to cope. At that stage the tasks will be split among many people doing exactly the same task and yet coordinating their activities. Imagine if you will, people flooding into the premises of a bank or payment office. Many cashiers wait in booths doing exactly the same job, overseen by managers and perhaps a helper guiding the queues. The architecture and layout of the building hosting these activities, is itself designed to allow a smooth flow of people.

Hosting a distributed architecture is more complex then a traditional centralized system where everything happens in one place. Parallel events need to be coordinated so that they work as a seamless whole and transactional control assumes a critical role. Hardware setup and middleware software need to be designed much in the same way as a purpose-built building, and layers of middle management in the organization would be in place for a human organization. The applications themselves should be aware that they are running in a distributed environment and be able to both benefit and not obstruct this environment.

The key to a successful internet presence stems from both an understanding of the nature of the internet and the tools that are now available to build up this success. The internet has indeed come a long way.

Endeavour has evolved its hosting services starting from its own demanding requirements for hosting its Internet Payment Gateways. Since then, Endeavour has been offering advanced hosting services to serve clients around the world. Real time backups, applications designed for distributed architectures, geographically distributed resources such as databases and fail-safe architectures are at the heart of these services.

About The Author

Mr. Vincent Bezzina (B. Eng. Hons.)

Mr. Bezzina has had a distinguished career across a number of industries, always in the IT field. Endeavour has delivered IT, consultancy and training services to major blue chip companies in 32 countries across the globe. The name of the company, Endeavour, espouses Mr. Bezzina’s own philosophy

info@e-i-b-s.com

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Sports trainers is assumed to be the most critical piece of equipment you’ll acquire so it is critical that you pick the most suitable pair.

A great number of people do not appreciate that there are many differences in the way sports shoes pad your feet. It’s not good for your feet if you take part in football or tennis in the identical shoes you use whilst jogging.

“Unfortunately, sixty-five percent of the United Kingdom’s recreational male athletes & women athletes wear the incorrect shoes for their preferred sport,” he says. “Trainers are the most crucial piece of sportswear gear you will ever buy and altering what you wear on your feet can put off injuries.”

Football can put loads of stress on the feet, in particular when playing on non-natural pitches such as AstroTurf. The boots can also put force on your feet, & it’s not odd for a footballer to suffer from corns, calluses or damaged, thickened and ingrown toenails. A superb, well-fitted pair of shoes is fundamental and there shouldn’t be any signs of pressure on the foot after a game or training session. Find superb deals on running spikes online today.

Racquet sports: It is critical when taking part racket sports, such as tennis or badminton, to choose shoes exclusively intended for the purpose. These sports activity involve loads of left-to-right movement and sports shoes will not give the apt firmness. Racquet sport footwear are heavier and stiffer than jogging footwear, as their toes are manufactured for stop-&-go action. Comfort is recommended to be your number one priority and it is important to substitute your sports shoes repeatedly.

Walking is a tremendous way to get going a calm exercise regime, whereas the more adventurous go for hiking. It’s excellent for your cardiovascular health but is lower impact and so comes with less risk of damage.

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So, the subject of diving is one again slapped liberally across the back pages in a way unseen since the dubious heroics of Robert Pires for the ‘Invincibles’ against Portsmouth at Highbury, or perhaps even since ‘Der Bomber’ arrived just up the road in N17. Players, seemingly always clad in blue, are flinging themselves to the ground in faux-agony, screaming for mother, only to hop up a few minutes later and score the winner. Likewise, a similar number of players in blue seem to feel they have the authority to book the opposition, waving a staggering number of imaginary cards every weekend, as referees have to high tail it to avoid becoming part of a ruckus more at home in a shady Brixton pub.

There is, however, a question that nobody is really asking. To most, the answer is immediately obvious, the question provocative, and the problem acute. But that’s something you’ll only find in certain places around the world. Elsewhere people couldn’t give a monkeys if a player dived to win a penalty. So I ask, is there really anything wrong with diving, and if so, what?

Diving is perceived differently in the different footballing cultures around the world. Those that rely on hard work an organisation, such as the English, German and Soviet cultures, frown upon diving and castigate any players who take a tumble. Conversely, the more traditionally ‘continental’ or Latin countries seem to find it awkwardly acceptable, part of the game not worth making a fuss about, as much a skill as drawing the foul in Basketball.

To illustrate my example, take a look at Didier Drogba, a player whose histrionics have garnered him many column inches of late. He came from France with not a whisper about his habits, merely an image of a powerful, direct frontman with the ability to destroy any defence on his day. I am, of course, assuming simulation isn’t something he’s taken to whilst he was on these shores, and that he was similarly prone to a dive in France. Now think back to the aforementioned Klinsmann. Coming from a Germanic football culture, even the suspicion that he had a tendency to take a tumble in the box brought with it universal tabloid condemnation of the player before he had even kicked a ball. The French didn’t care that Drogba did it. The Germans were positively outraged by the suspicion that one of their top stars sometimes did. Klinsmann never once threw himself to the ground in the premiership. How nice it would be to say that of Drogba.

This comes as something of a paradox. The foundations of German football culture come from teamwork, effort, and a win-at-all-costs attitude to competition, whereas the Latin nations (especially Portugal and Brazil) place, traditionally, a much higher value on the style in which a match is played than whether or not it is won. Logically thinking, you’d expect those with the do-or-die attitudes to be the most prone to diving, but if one looks a little bit deeper, there is another level. The Germanic teams base their style around honesty. The trust that a player will give 100% for the team, place the collective above the individual, and win with honour and pride. However, the flashy Latinos base their game around deception, subtlety and guile, at complete loggerheads with the efficiency espoused by their European counterparts. This culture is far more likely to develop a sneaky act of gamesmanship such as diving, where a player doing so will receive the congratulations of his team mates rather than castigation by all watching, and a yellow card.

I realise I have generalised horribly, but for stereotypes to exist, they must be founded in some kind of truth. With the fairly new experience of foreigners coming in to the English game, they are bringing in things which their home football culture accepts, but the English one passionately regrets. Whilst diving may be seen as a skill in some parts of the world, in England it is definitely not, and for us to preserve our footballing identity, it must be stamped out on these shores and amongst English players.

However, I can’t help but think that if, for example, the Portuguese stopped diving overnight, world football would lose some of its colour and variety, Football is a world game, one that links, yet distinguishes, the different cultures of the world, and offers them a universal arena in which their similarities and differences are acted out for all to see. I’m not saying diving should be encouraged, but it should be accepted as a problem that isn’t going to away unless we start to strip away some of the things that make our sport great, and with crowds more passionless than ever, and players booked for celebrating with them, that’s the last thing we need right now.

An article by Ben Johnston who writes articles for Focus on football – Football news and articles from the fans.

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