Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Shame FFA Shame

The match panel for the final has reversed both red cards from the final. Apparently this was done in record time.

Where is the support for Matthew Breeze, the Ref that the FFA chose?

They have sold him down the river. This is just wrong. Refs decisions should be protected. Otherwise everyone at all levels of the game will think they can openly question them.

And get angry and get away with it.

This is crap. I think FIFA is going to be cheesed with FFA.

So if Danny Allsopp did not head butt Cornthwait, where is the sanction for lying by Cornthwait? Where is the Vukovic suspension for Eugene Galekovic's physical handling of Breeze to persuade him to send Allsopp off. Isn't that worse if Allsopp had no case to answer? ie The review panel is implying that Cornthwait and Galekovic conspired to have Allsopp sent off.

This is rubbish. The FFA needs to explain itself. The final now does look like it was a farce. And the FFA does not back its own decisions and decision makers.

Plus it has now come out that Breeze warned Cristiano earlier in the season that if he raised his elbow in jumping for the ball he would get a red card. Fair warning.

2 comments:

Bill said...

Hey John,
Needless to say I have different opinions as to whether overturning the cards was a good decision. I think it's about time, after fans from all clubs calling for it for years, that the match review panel has the balls to admit that referees made an error. Remember, the first step to recovery is admitting that you have a problem...

As for Cornthwaite and Galekovic: Galekovic could have been carded for involving himself in the melee, no question. But if you think Cornthwaite should be sanctioned, then surely Muscat should be, as well, for trying to sway Breeze into believing that Cristiano deliberately swung the elbow? (i.e. conspiring to get him sent off).

It's a slippery slope when you start punishing players willy nilly for appealing to the ref. Sure, if they make the 'card' gesture or tell the ref what he should do, but not if they are simply protesting a perceived wrong.

And I don't see Breeze's sendoff of Cristiano as 'fair', taking into account his warning earlier in the season. Judge a man on his actions, not his past or reputation. Besides, now it just looks like Breeze was simply targeting Cristiano and looking for an excuse to show the card.

Yes, the FFA should back their officials. Protecting them when they err so spectacularly is a different story. We need transparency, not cover-ups.

And, by the way, the final was a farce. Breeze saw to that. Better that the FFA admit error than try to sweep it all under the rug.

john said...

I do see your viewpoint Bill
And no doubt would be taking it if the Roar had just lost the final. Although I, like Vidmar said, think that the preliminary final was a more important game. Asia is more important for the growth of the A-League than the GF.

See if I can put this a different way to make my point more concrete.

The FFA selected Breeze to ref the game. I have spoken to players about him over 4 years. Everyone knows what he is like. He walks to his drum. What he did and the way did it were no surprise to me. Nor I think many other watchers of the A-L - read Mike Slaters reports.

Given that the FFA set up this circumstance they should have lived with the consequence.

Their actions have consequences beyond the A-L. The message they have sent, by not even explaining that they think Breeze is a good ref, is 'if a ref makes a mistake, we are prepared to publically humiliate them if we see fit.'

And that is unacceptable. The shortages of refs of a high level will continue, and kids will be turned off from refing.

The FFA has scored an own goal. Shame on them.

As for fans calling for admissions of error what is the point? The grand final is not going to be replayed. Or perhaps it should be?

This could have been done so differently. Even professionally.

The FFA and its match panel could have slowly and calmly issued a statement. 'While video was available to the match referees, it was available to us. From repeated viewings we have seen that the intention that the match officials believed were present, may on balance of probability not have been there. The match officials were and remain in our opinion the highest quality available for this match. Given this we have determined that Allsopp and Cristiano will sever no further sentence.'

Bill, I understand rugby league in the UK used to have the NFS option when viewing video. There is nothing you can do about the result.