Zambia And Nigeria Agree To Penalty Fun

There have been many attempts over the years by the powers that be to add further drama to the beautiful game.*

The idea of a golden goal was toyed with for a while, allowing the keeper to pick-up a back-pass was outlawed and there have been rumours of including an added time multi-ball scenario at the end of each half for those tedious away games against Bolton.

None of these though have ever added to my enjoyment of a match, but Monday nights African Cup of Nations quarter-final between Zambia ad Nigeria may have hit upon a golden idea.

The game was utterly forgettable. It was clearly played in temperatures exceeding that of my oven and the pace of the game and the energy of the players reflected this.

I persevered with the game, but it took until the last two kicks of the match for my attention to be truly grabbed by the action on the screen.

Much like during a boring and slovenly game of Pro Evolution Soccer or FIFA, the two teams decided to add an extra spice to the penalty shootout, seemingly to make up for the tedium of the previous 120 minutes.

They allowed their keepers to take the fifth and ultimately deciding penalties.

In a game which I had no vested interest in, this simple gesture suddenly brought a smile to my face an added a sense of tension to a game that up until the shoot-out had barely held my attention.

Thank you Kennedy Mweene and Vincent Enyeama.