The standard of officials

[Bus-Conductor]

Once again Howard Webb decides a game.

Mike Dean also decided to award a pen against Ekotto yesterday that would be ten pens a game if it is. Amazing how he completely missed Huth shoving Bale half way across the six yard box a few minutes before.

Vermalen's sending off for Arsenal was ridiculous, the offside that wasn't given at Villa.

 

[spurdownunder]

I think a big part of the solution is the make refereeing a profession. At present, they are low paid amatuers, who have to also have a day job.

Make Referee's full time professionals by paying them a stack more and have them spend all the time they're away from the pitch studying rules and watching replays of various incidents. Each week they could sit down and hold a full review of all incidents/decisions from each of the top 3 tiers.

I would also recommend a panel of Referee managers, represented by past players, managers and referees as well as FA representatives. This would drum in consistency (hopefully).

The other issue, as has been noted above, is respect. The FA should give refs the power to send players off for surrounding him and remonstrating. It might take 3 games to become effective. The first game at Old Trafford, 8 players would be sent off inside the first 8 minutes, Fergie would have an annuerism and it wouldn't happen there again. Drogba would have to chance leagues and John Terry...who gives a fuck about john fucking terry!

In Aus, our Aussie rules comp is much less flushed with cash (obviously), but all umpires are professional umpires. The league dictates which rules they want enforced and all umpires are coached to create consistency. Of course there are still errors and howlers, but IMO, far fewer than in days passed. After each round, the umpires then submit a report explaining their decisions, which the public is free to read.

 

[Marty]

Refs have been pro in England since 2001.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

Once again the ref decides a vital game. If Villa end up in the CL they will owe martin Atkinson a massive thanks. Gave a penalty he clearly couldn't have seen which was actually a superb tackle.

 

[cwy21]

FYI, Howard Webb is probably getting the Champions League final. Maybe Bo Larsen could get it, but I'd be pretty surprised if its not Webb. He's pretty much the only guy they can really give it to because of previous appointments.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

Two CL sem finals heavily influenced by referees again. The ridiculous sending off of Cris (lyon) for a perfectly good tackle and clap made an uphill task impossible.

Then last night we saw a ridiculous card for Thiago Motta, and a perfectly good goal disallowed.

Game after game after game of incompetence. When are FIFA/UEFA going to get to grips with this massive blight on our game. I don't entirely blame the officials. They should be helped by the use of video replay, at the very least they should be made to explain their decisions after every game. When a player gets it wrong it can cost him his place, ref's are virtually unaccountable as even the ones that make mistake after mistake keep being given game after game.

It's an embarrassment to football that about 70% of all games are influenced by poor decisions by officials.

 

[werty]

In fairness, if Cris wasn't so stupid he wouldn't have gotten himself sent off. Yes, the yellow was a bad decision, but if Cris just walked away it would have only been a bad decision, rather than a game changing one.

As for the last night, the ref was bad in general, but there was so much play-acting going on it was almost impossible to ref. Busquets conned him for the red card and I have sympathy with him for that. The handball decision was bad though.

 

[Dr Know]

I guess yesterday's game just confirms what we've all been saying

 

[Legend10]

Stoke will be pissed this morning as well, they have suffered at the hands of the ref 2 weeks running costing them 2 defeats.

 

[Bus-Conductor]

Having come back from our game v Bolton thinking could there possibly be a more incompetent referee in the history of referees than Clattenberg, watched the Newcastle v Arse game on MOTD and realise Dowd must have run him close today. Diabolical tackle by Barton goes unpunished, Diaby understandably reacts gets sent off, Nolan and Barton do exactly the same to Arse's keeper, not even a card, good goals disallowed etc.

Also just seen Everton v Blackpool highlights, referee blows whistle stupidly as Saha scores and brings back play for a free kick outside box.

Clattenberg today was as bad as I've ever seen him, and I've seen him be fucking terrible.

Game after fucking game the referees are deciding games with mistakes, this can't go on.

 

[cwy21]

Dowd has been by far the best ref in England this year and it hasn't been close.

He had a shocker today though.