I wondered if you Canaries would be twittering about this. For those who are interested, I offer a discussion of whether QPR should try to find a way of getting rid of the turbulent Scouser. Along the way, your charming manager and lovely owners of the sickly yellow number 4. shirt get a mention. http://thisismyengland.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/bye-bye-barton.html
That article is rubbish, especially about Lambert and Johnson. Too many times I've heard QPR fans say 'there was no headbutt' and 'Johnson is a cheat' but I am yet to hear any justification. All I've heard is abuse and 'he's a cheat.' That is not a justification!
Well that is the single most ridiculously biased paragraph on the incident I've ever read! Kind of undermines the whole of your article- unfortunate, given that you've obviously put a lot of time into it. I've seen far worse than somebody touching their face after someone headbutts them. And re. Lambert- you must be a complete moron. He had to defend his player irrespective of whether Barton did actually headbutt him or not( (which, btw, is inconclusive as it does appear that contact was made).
If it means that much to you: there were two of yours and Barton all having a go at each other while running near the halfway line. If you're going to punish Barton for that then you have to punish the other two as well. As the ref saw none of that then rightly it wasn't acted upon. Before that he'd been clattered from behind by one of yours (possibly Surman though I've forgotten who) which was somehow missed by Swarbrick, the referee. Barton and Johnson then square up, neither the referee nor linesman see anything that they feel requires stopping the game, Bennett fouls Barton again which the referee gives a free-kick for and sends Barton off for something which he didn't see but guessed on based on Johnson's reaction which I'm well aware wasn't to roll around on the floor as Warnock was wrong to say.
I'm not really sure how you want people to justify it. I don't blame Johnson for faking the contact, if there was a modicum of it, or exaggerating it if there wasn't, it's unfortunately the professional thing to do in modern football.
Ah now you're demonstrating that you haven't watched the replays at all. The referee saw neither the headbutt nor Johnson's reaction. It was the fourth official that made the call because they are allowed to flag up violent conduct- the fourth official saw all of it. Given that Johnson's reaction was instantaneous after the headbutt and hardly prolonged, it would be ridiculous to suggest that either official could only have seen one part
Fair comment. A sad state of the game. I would hasten to add that almost all Norwich fans were really embarrassed when Marc Tierney theatrically threw himself to the floor after a little push. We would have condemned Johnson if his actions had been anywhere near as bad as some we have seen
Maybe the Norwich player should have got a booking, but nothing more. Also, have you ever considered that the fourth official may have seen it? Johnson barely reacts initially, it was Barton who squared up to him and he clearly moves his head towards Johnson's. If you're going to make a statement about something it needs backing up. If a QPR fan says Johnson cheated, say why. Don't tell the person to f off. There is also no hard evidence to say Johnson faked the contact and Barton didn't headbutt him. Contary to this, there is no hard evidence to say Barton did headbutt Johnson
I did watch the replays. They weren't conclusive at all and even if the fourth official saw an incident of some sort he's going on Barton's reputation and Johnson's reaction more than anything.
I guess we're going to have to agree to disagree. From seeing it live and replays I still think the pair of them were as bad as each other, squaring up to each other, and Johnson was clever enough to take advantage of the situation and pull his head away.
On a side note, I appreciate that you're being reasonable in debating this and you are giving justifications rather than telling me to f off.
I doubt that. The fourth official would have got a clear view of this, better than the TV replays, but if he did go on Barton's reputation, which is unlikely, he is wrong to do so.
On the contrary- the MOTD replays showed that the fourth official had a very clear line of sight. Nothing to do with reputation- he actually saw the incident. I would tend to agree with you regarding the stuff in the build-up, but ultimately if one person tries to headbutt and the other doesn't, they're the guilty party. No matter whether wound up or not. That's true in the laws of football as much as the laws of England (it is not a defence to allege aggravation, only a mitigation, which means it could only be used to lessen Barton's punishment).
Forget Joey Barton - hes a lowlife. But lads, would you not be willing to concede that Johnson's simulation and others like it are destroying the sport and allowing it to become a nufter's game where physical contact will soon be outlawed altogether and the game ruined?
Agreed and not just player incidents.Diving for spot kicks is now so sophisticated that you cannot even tell on a slo-mo replay if it is a dive or not.
I've slept on this so as not to make a knee-jerk reaction! The one thing that, to me, beggars belief is that ANYONE can find ANYTHING to say in the defence of Joey Barton, not only over recent events, but over his life in general! I've never seen a more compelling advert for contraception!
Rephrase your question to exclude Johnson and I'll agree with you. Tevez got booked earlier in the season at Carrow Road for diving, however replays show that contact was made and it was a foul. It shows that referees have come to accept that diving is part of the game, no matter who it is. Which I don't like.
i'm still laughing at colin's description of johnson's reaction. "the lad has just collapsed" err, no he didn't, he touched his face and then got on with the game. nice try colin, nice try...
I know I nearly punched the TV when he said that, it's a shame the journo didn't call him on it at the time i'd have liked to see his face if challenged. I think there are probably some deluded fans that believed him as well. People need to wake and smell the coffee, if someone comes at you there is a reflex action involved you can't stop from reacting it's involuntary. IF Johnson was a cheat (like Barton) he WOULD have gone down like a sack of potatoes, he didn't and wasn't looking for the foul simple as that. The Tierney incident was embarassing tbh but I guess he figured when in Rome.....
Still no excuse for Tierney, I feel he maybe should have been booked. Klasnic should have still been sent off as he did headbutt Tierney like Barton did on Johnson.
