ONE could almost hear Captain Mainwaring, of Dad's Army, uttering his famous admonishment: "Stupid boy!" as David Beckham, Britain's most highly paid footballer, lashed out with his foot and placed his England team-mates in an impossible position against Argentina.

Here was a young man earning more money in a year than most of us see in a lifetime acting like a spoiled little brat, determined to have his say in a situation which had already been dealt with by the referee.

High finance and young footballers can be a lethal combination. No doubt they get expert advice on how to handle their rapidly accumulated fortunes. But at the end of the day it is all down to character and, sadly, many of them do not possess the necessary strengths in that department.

Gazza found finances and fame too much to handle. And in an earlier era George Best, earning only a fraction of the money paid out to today's young stars, sacrificed his playing career in the cause of booze, gambling and women. Last night's painful episode also demonstrated what a difficult task faces coaches like Glenn Hoddle.

Earlier in the World Cup he was slated by millions of armchair fans for leaving Beckham out of his starting line-up. He later explained this by saying the Manchester United star was not focused.

Now we know he was right. And let us hope that the fans who were so quick to criticise will exercise a little more understanding and tolerance as he rebuilds his squad for the next big challenge, the European Championships in 2000.

There are no prizes for valiant losers who go out at this stage of the World Cup. But the rest of the England team can hold their heads up high. They were magnificent and no one would blame Ince and Batty for missing penalties in that nerve-shattering atmosphere.

The fact that the game went to penalties was down to the childish antics of one player, David Beckham.

Hoddle's preparations for the European Championships will include brat handling.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.