Standards are not set by referee’s, they’re set by the league. Newcastle United saw this first hand yesterday.
If anybody watched, or heard, the match against Burton Albion yesterday, we can all agree that some of the decisions made were not only asinine, but also diabolical.
At the 29th minute, it seemed that Dwight Gayle was fouled in the Burton 18-yard box and the Magpies were awarded a penalty. Matt Ritchie was nominated to take the penalty, in which he calmly finished into the bottom corner.
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Quickly during celebration, Newcastle had the goal disallowed by referee Keith Stroud, in which an indirect goal kick was awarded to Burton for reasons unknown to the Toon Army. The reasons are debatable, and it seems that more light will be shone onto this as time goes by.
Rafa Benitez and several other Newcastle players were in dismay to the lack of certainty in the decision making, and were not easily swayed by the officials’ inability to engage understandable reasoning. Our fans on the other hand, were absolutely livid with the incompetence and responded by chanting songs about the referee being something that rhymes with “banker”.
With jokes aside, this level of shoddy refereeing is not excusable. Not only did Keith Stroud not know exactly what to do (quickly), neither did his assistants or the fourth official! This could indicate manipulation of some kind, but no one really knows. What we do know is that the amateurishness is collective.
In hindsight, this match could have been a much better experience with a higher level of refereeing. It has been mentioned numerous times this season that the level of refereeing in the Championship needs to be a step higher than it is. A promotion and league title for Newcastle is a £100 million ordeal… £5 refereeing only leads to horribly organized scandals.
With everything said, the Football Association needs to have a good long hard talk about officiating in the Championship… Not only is it big money for some, it’s life or death for others. Standards are not set by referee’s, they’re set by the league. The league themself also needs to have a good long think.
Let’s all keep in mind that the Championship is heavily laden with international players of all levels… it’s not as “crap” as the average Joe on the street would say.
Look back on our pre-match preview and decide on how you think we did.
Next: Newcastle United vs. Burton Albion preview
Let us know below what you think of the diabolical refereeing in the match versus Burton Albion. Howay the lads, and long live the Toon!