[Steve W]

I love hockey. I hate soccer. One of the reasons is you play to win. Soccer you play to tie and hope your goalie is better in shootouts than the other teams. Some of the ideas are valid but if you want to water down the competition then why not draw straws at the beginning of each match to see who wins.

As to breaking the plane rules, they are easier to call than others. Once a robot breaks the plane of the diamond plate they are in violation. However whether someone is intentionally damaging another robot is tougher to call. I had a discussion with the head ref at Pittsburgh after he told our team to back off. He said that he thought we were damaging another robot (which may or may not be true as there were no pieces laying around). My point was that the rules allow push and shoving and that if a robot can't take it so what. Our team did back off which let the other team go to the other side of the field and push our alliance partners away from the platform. Was this right? Who knows. What I do know is that the ref did the best he could and inforced the rules to the best of his ability and I commend him for his dedication and hard work. He is a volunteer and had no ill will to any of the teams. As to my opinion, I was partial to my team and may not see things the same. The ref also checked out the rules after the game to make sure that he remembered right. Again another plus for the refereeing crews.
On the other hand I do not condon ramming or intentionally damaging robots. I would rather see our team lose than be seen as one who intentionally damages others. It is a fine line between aggressive play and detructive play but most teams know the difference.

I hope that FIRST never goes back to the way they were last year. This years system is a lot more exciting (and demanding) than before but by the interest shown by the spectators proved it to be a better system.