He should be fined the equivalent of the gate receipts, said fine to be paid back to the fans who had a potential firecracker of a game ruined by his actions....
That's exactly the sentiment in Aussie Rules - there's no sending off in the game but 'offenders' are instead put on report and have to front a panel who assess their guilt then sentence accordingly. I think I'd prefer to see that adopted in football, possibly with a couple of tweaks to the rule - such as the offender being compulsarily subbed off. That may also mean another look at the sub rules - the victim's side could be allowed an extra sub if he has been carried off. And a hefty fine for any ref who makes a mistake like today's.
That is one of the best ideas I have read for a long time. Not sure that anyone has suggested it here.
fuming, fuming, fuming!!! I don't care if the ref has admitted his mistake, or if we win the appeal, which we obviously will. This was almost as bad as the ghost goal...a ghost stamp! Bloody ridiculous. This would have been a good game, and whatever the result, 11 v 11 it would have been fair. Annoyingly, 5 minutes before the red card i was busy congratulating the ref for letting the game flow..there had hardly been anything all half and what there had been was minor and not worth stopping the match for...he was doing well, and then one moment of madness killed it. Bloody idiot! #nothappy!! /rant
For the first twenty minutes we were outstanding, and looked likely to run away with it. Vydra should have had at least two goals in that period , and they would not have come back from that. There are so many technically adept players in this team --- we really should be winning more games. What is the missing ingredient? Is it lack of finishing power, bad luck or lack of a killer instinct ? After about 20 minutes we seemed to "take the foot off the gas" as Zola said. We let Middlesboro have possession, conceded ground, let them gain in confidence. Their no 9 became very influential. and a goal seemed inevitable.Even so I expected us to regain the initiative in the second half. The sending off changed all that . At first I thought the Boro player was getting the card, and I thought "A bit unfair" . Unbelievable that it was Vydra--did he even commit a foul? We almost hung on, but it should never have come to that. Errors by refs are inevitable, and some understandable with marginal cases decided in a split second, perhaps in the confusion of the penalty box. But this was in no way marginal and quite inexcusable.
First 20 minutes we played some lovely football. Chelaboah looked particularly good...a Viera in the making. Then we lost the initiative, Boro started passing the ball round a bit and one or two of our players began to tire too early for comfort. Once down to 10 we inevitably sat back, though there were still chances at either end. I'm sure there is more work needed on defensive organisation. Both Boro goals were preventable. More important, it's surely time to leave Cassetti out? Not only is he slow and easily beaten, he gets drawn forward leaving huge gaps behind which aren't being covered.
It's all very well blaming the ref for a very very poor decision - but ultimately we allowed Middlesbrough back into the game when we had 11 on the field and let them score when we should have been building up a lead that they couldn't turn over. Too many times this season we have played pretty football but not finished off and that is our problem. We are at the stage where the new players should have settled in and in many cases they haven't. Zola needs to practice finishing not just pass and move.
Don't they do the subbing thing in friendlies unless it's dangerous play? So something like a handball on the line or a second booking would result in a substitution or at least has done in the past. I must admit that I would like to see sin-bins introduced as I think that would be more suitable for certain offences and I'd make diving one of them. To be sent-off for 2 cards one of them would have to be a sin-binning offence and it would need 3 yellows to be sent-off.
To be fair to refs, their job is hard enough without complicating it any further like that IMO - after all, we often see confused refs allowing players to play on after two yellows! I'm not in favour of sin bins either - there's really no need to give one team an unfair advantage of any length simply because one opposing player can't control himself. For me, a red card offence should simply mean the offending player is subbed off and given an automatic hefty suspension - with the right to appeal of course - that way games can remain an even-sided spectacle which is what paying customers want.
yellotoyou--- yes , our game plan should be to score 3 in the first twenty minutes , then it does not matter if a couple of players go off for a siesta after that. Cassetti's idea of defending seems to be to run alongside the opposing player in possession, till he makes a pass. He himself can make a telling forward pass, but is not effective as a defender--the opposite of Doyley. But I know who I would prefer to see in the team.I predict that Lloyd will be back in the team as a regular starter before Christmas.
I wonder if Zola is "required" to give these loanees games...... as part of showcasing their abilities and acclimatising them to English football ??
I wonder what is the logic of having Cassetti here at Watford? At 35 he is hardly one of those players that are here to be developed and showcased in the hope that they can be sold on at an enhanced value. He is way past his peak value. He was not considered good enough to stay at Roma, and though Udinese gave him a one year contract, he has never played for them. He must be on very high wages by Watford standards--hopefully Udinese are paying for him. But why is he here? Perhaps Zola thinks that an Italian player of his experience is needed in the squad to help the younger Italian players. He is not at his stage of his career a better defender than others we have, so ---time to review his role?
Highlights here; http://www.skysports.com/video/inline/0,,16500_8146620,00.html And even Mowbray doesn't believe it was a red card; http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11686/8144466/Mowbray-agrees-with-opposite-number-Zola Not that really helps us now! Certainly sounds like we should have been out of sight before they equalised though... but we are still improving and going in the right direction. I just have that feeling that once it all clicks, someone will be taking a hammering! We now have almost 2 weeks on the training pitch with most of the players, to try and get as many of them up to match fitness as possible!
For some reason Scott McDonald always does well against us - I was not surprised to see him back in the first team for this match.
How about a blue card, issued to those who have wrongly been issued with a red and to be traded in next time they receive a card, wiping the slate clean? Otherwise there's no compensation for the likes of Vydra who can't have felt good sitting out the last hour of the game and seeing the side lose.
One thing that could be done is that if the sending off happens before half time, the ref should be allowed to rescind his decision after video review. Can't see any downside to this; not perfect but at least an improvement. (plus the manager should be able to reverse any substitutions made in the wake of the sending off)
Maybe you could have a review system. Maybe just one every game for each manager where they feel a decision has gone against them, such as a penalty or red card, which then gets referred to the 4th official ()or 5th in the stands) who has maybe a minute to review and decide. I think the main problem with using technology is that most decisions are a matter of opinion. Ours was rather clear-cut, but many others aren't, and most grounds would only have the one camera angle to review. Even then, you might have differing opinon from the ref and 4th official. I do like the way rugby have done it, especially now they can review the build up to a try or an incident they have missed - but you do have to limit this or otherwise the game could become a bit too stop-start!
