Wow…we’re only nine days into the 07/08 campaign and the men in black have already taken center stage!
According to conventional wisdom, a good referee should be seen but rarely heard - obviously Rob Styles, Alan Wiley and Andy D’Urso didn’t get that memo. At Anfield, Ewood Park and Craven Cottage they had their megaphones turned up to number eleven (one louder than ten) along with their best ‘don’t you look at me’ frowns this weekend as controversy raged.
Let’s take a quick look at this bumbling trio, review their respective matches and perhaps come up with a solution before anarchy reigns.
Rob Styles, who increasingly reminds me of the public school master and ex-referee, David Ellary, had an absolute rascal on Merseyside. Firstly he let the players impose their will over him. Secondly he gave the worst penalty decision I’ve seen in years against Steve Finnan. Thirdly he booked, Michael Essien twice but didn’t show him the red card and lastly he also managed to caution a further eight players in ninety minutes of rather tame play considering the history of the two teams.
Over at Blackburn, Alan Wiley also had his date book out with eight players cautioned along with Ryan Nelsen seeing red. Admittedly the Kiwi deserved to go but once again you couldn’t help but feel that the man in the middle was not in control of the proceedings. Arsenal boss, Arsene Wenger, claimed that Rovers waged ‘violence’ on his charges, which in typical Wenger fashion was way over the top however, Wiley needed to take control of this contest from the first whistle. Like the Liverpool/Chelsea encounter this match up had plenty of ‘previous’ and needed a firm early hand.
The biggest mistake of the weekend though goes to Andy D’Urso as Fulham lost to Middlesbrough. Subbing in for Lee Mason who limped of after seven minutes, D’Urso failed to spot, Boro goalkeeper, Mark Schwarzer cuddling the ball whilst in the back of the net denying Fulham and David Healy a last gasp equalizer. I suppose we can’t pin all the blame on D’Urso who did consult with his assistant but even from a terrible TV angle it was so obvious that the ball had crossed the line. It was Pedro Mendes versus Roy Carroll all over again (Man U v Spurs). When they tab up the points at the end of the season and Boro have plus two while Fulham have minus one, this basic error could be worth millions of dollars.
If we look at major sports from around the world nearly every one of them employs some form of video/graphic replay – not to change the game – but to help the officials make the right decision. In the States the NFL, NBA and NHL all use technology while cricket, rugby union/league and tennis have also joined the 21st century. That leaves two major sports with their heads stuck in the ground…football and baseball. Two sports steeped in tradition and yet unable to grasp the simple fact, that people make mistakes. If you can identify why they refuse to acknowledge this…I’m all ears.
Let’s end 99% of the arguments once and for all and employ video replays in the following circumstances when there is and this is the important phrase…and ‘element of doubt’: 1) penalties 2) red/yellow cards 3) balls crossing the goal line. So what if it stops the game for a minute or two. At least the decision will be correct and just think of the drama as you await the outcome from the video referee.
Another possible solution is to employ two referees who patrol one half of the pitch each. High schools in the US use this system as a money saving device for soccer (not paying two linesmen). With the riches of the Premier League another official is hardly going to dent the finances. This will allow referees to view different angles of the same incident and if they need to collaborate to get it right, so be it.
Look, at the end of the day the sport has become too difficult to officiate. The rules were established over 100 years ago when the players moved at a snail pace and the referees could keep up with the play. Now they fly around the field and obviously in a professional game attempt to gain an advantage wherever and whenever possible. Let’s do the likes of Styles, Wiley and D’Urso a favor. Give them another set of eyes so that when they come home after a hard day at the office, they can turn on their TV sets, smile contendly and view a job well done.
Until then, get the beers in and my thoughts are with Brian McBride for a speedy recovery.
These are the officiating crews that remain at the World Cup and they are eligible for any of the 8 remaining matches. The lack of big time exposure some of them have had to football at the highest level is staggering.
With the terrible officiating we've seen to date, nothing is going to change with some of these trio's.
AFC (1) Referee : KAMIKAWA Toru, Japan Assistants: HIROSHIMA Yoshikazu, Japan; KIM Dae Young, Korea Republic
Who will break into the 'B4' and who will avoid the drop. So many questions will be answered over the next nine months because it's back - the greatest show on earth - The Barclays Premier League.
