The Latest Drama – my take.

First I would wish to offer my sincere condolences to the Thai people following the King’s death.

However…. this drama should not be able to hide itself under the shield of grief that is currently present in Thai society. This drama has been brought about by the usual blatant ineptitude of the FAT – if there is a wrong decision to be made, it would seem that the men in charge are the first in queue to make it.

We now have the ridiculous situation where it is OK to ogle girls (boys) in scanty attire and feathers at Alcazar and their like but not OK to watch the premier football league season draw to a conclusion.

The FAT jumped the gun – no other way to describe it. By making the rash and early decision to cancel the season they gave the nod to individual clubs to say “Ok the season is over that’s fine by me” – 4 clubs followed this lead – one of whom stood to retain premier league status by accepting the cancellation.

The FAT decision has once again led the TPL into a period of uncertainty and unending court action. I personally am growing tired of the off pitch dramas – I am a simple FOOTBALL fan. These dramas erode the confidence of ordinary fans in the league leadership.

Chainat and Army have been robbed of the chance to retain Premier League status by playing FOOTBALL and I feel for them. If I were a Chainat or Army fan, I would now be considering whether to support this league in the future – more much needed fans lost, maybe forever.

In my professional life I was taught to communicate, negotiate and consult before any decision was made. Had the FAT followed these innate professional procedures, this whole drama would not have unfolded.

What the FAT should have done:

Step 1 – check what the situation was regarding the parameters of the entertainment ban before cancelling the season.

Step 2 - Consult with the clubs.

Step 3 - Negotiate the ways in which Thai football could pay its respect to the Nation’s loss

Step 4 - Consider all the football implications of any decisions made.

Step 5 - Make the decision.

In my opinion, taking FOOTBALLING angles and the need to show respect, the following decision should have been taken.

The season should be allowed to conclude. The matches to be played behind closed doors (with the usual full live TV coverage available). 1 or 2 minutes silence pre-match, black armbands of course and teams to wear plain (no adverts or logos) black and white strips. This I feel would have shown full respect and would have received a positive response from the Thai people.

This drama was self inflicted and avoidable and to be honest my only thought now is “How long until the next disaster befalls Thai football… I don’t think we will be waiting long.