Thought it might be good to have a debate on the decisions we're seeing week in week out from refs and linesmen. The standard I'd probably at its lowest since I can remember which theoretically shouldn't be the case since they're full time now. There's obviously plenty of other things to take into account. Simulation or cheating is probably as bad as its been too which obviously makes a refs job much harder. I think with twitter and the likes attention on any mistake is brought to the masses almost instantly which can make the reaction to it reach fever pitch before the match is even over. Add to that Sky having 100 different angles on every incident and refs knowing giving decisions against certain teams will see their manager making sure you're in the headlines all week must create huge pressure for officials. On the other hand refs are paid relatively well now and are full time should mean that they should be able to handle the pressure that goes with being a ref. Being the top men in your profession should also mean you can ignore the media and give decisions honestly on what you see as opposed to taking players reputations into account. A lot of the decisions we've seen officials get wrong lately have been so clear cut that you'd have to wonder about some of their ability to actually do the job. I reckon they haven't suddenly lost their 20/20 vision so is the pressure just too much for some of them. Take Michael Oliver for example. I would have had him down as a very good ref. He failed to give Fulham a penalty at old trafford. We can't be sure why he didn't,maybe he bottled it,he wouldn't be the first or maybe he just wasn't certain it was a peno. These things happen. But his performances since then would suggest that it's had an adverse effect on him mentally. In two games since then he's failed to give by my reckoning,5 definite penalties. 2 for us,1 for villa and 2 for Norwich. I don't think there's a ref in the league who would have given them all but to not even give one of them? Add to that he's booked two players for diving who were obviously fouled and you think that's more big decisions he's gotten wrong in two games than you'd expect one ref to get wrong in half a season. The two offside decisions in consecutive days the weekend were also unbelieveable. You'll get a couple like that most seasons but to get two like that in two days? Very strange. So what do people reckon? Should we be cutting the officials a lot more slack given the conditions they have to work under? Or should they be more accountable giving that theyre full time and their decisions could ultimately cost people their jobs and clubs millions? Apologies if there's already a thread on this but I couldn't find it.
Actually surprised there wasnt a thread on this as Iv been saying to myself all season that I cant remember a season like it in terms of poor decisions. I think it would be brilliant to see some ex players turn their hand and try become a referee. Was it a quote from the great man Bill Shankly ? -"the problem with referees is they know the rules but they dont know the game" A truer word has never been spoken.
You only have to look at the table of refs to see there is inconsistency everywhere http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/8784398/Premier-League-statistics.html Mike Dean with 12 penalties. Martin Atkinson with 9 reds. Those stats should be looked into as they are well above average, Some refs send players off for fouls that others dont even give a yellow. Some refs give penos for ball to hand in the box while others dont.
As somebody said regarding the Mancs/QPR game - 30 seconds to confirm the right action by TV footage, or 75 minutes of a game ruined. It's not a hard choice.
Not a fan of blaming refs myself, they have a hard job to do and mistakes will be made. I've said before that our game is the only one I can think of that the participants actively try to con the ref, they abuse them, belittle them and generally show them no respect. Mark Hughes hardly mentioned Ashley Young at all yet he was the only person who deliberately tried to cheat, the ref and linesman made honest mistakes they shouldn't have made but they were honest none the less. I think there is solutions to the problems if not the will to sort them. Retrospective bans for cheating should be brought in, I'd also like to see the refs being wired up with mics like they do in rugby and lets hear what Rooney's got to say to refs or what refs are saying to players. I wouldn't be against some sort of appeal system like they have in cricket, were the captain can make 1 call to be reviewed during the game and if he's right he gets another one. I was against goal line technology because I always felt mistakes are part of the game, something to talk about etc but now its gone so bad I don't see the harm in it. In saying all that there are no such excuses for linesmen, they have very little to do and should be expected to get 95% of tight decisions correct and 100% of blatant ones right. Maybe introduced 2 extra linesmen would sort that out.
But the type of technology they're talking about bringing in would have nothing to do with that anyway.
I did hear this yesterday didn't I?....The linesman from the Chelsea game was supposed to be officiating at our game tonight but has been given a few days off?
Yeah thats true. It's not necessarily disciplinary action apparently. Sometimes mike reilly does it just to take the official out of the spotlight. Although im sure the linesman will take it as a punishment.
Inconsistency all over the place with refs. With regard to the incident in the Man U game i think like most refs he just gambled instead of being man enough to say he couldn't see it. Obviously with Man U involved he was never going to have the courage to let play go on. If that was the other end his two arms would have been waving like Joe 90 and the game played on.
I think they could copy the American football where the officials are rated after every game and if they are consistently bad they get relegated down a league and ref's from lower leagues can be promoted , I can also see the merits of getting ex players into refereeing but given the scrutiny they are under not surprised that very few follow that path when their playing days are over
See the FA have rejected Derry's appeal how can they justify the ref's blatant mistake. Unbelievable there's the root of the problem in full effect.
Apparently it was a 3 man independent panel who upheld Derrys red card and we all know how fair and balanced they are.
A joke of a decision, the FA up their own arseholes as usual. Some things never change. I was talking to a few Mancs today and they were pissing themselves at that sending off. It was offside, it was a blatant dive, it wasn't a peno, it wasn't a sending off and 25 minutes gone. The last 2 games Liverpool have been denied 2 stonewall peno's and Fulham were denied a peno that Red nose said was one and then this decision. The FA have no credibility when they are making decisions like this.
And Mario Balotelli doesn't get punished for his tackle at the weekend.The FA say they can only intervene on off the ball incidents