Aston Villa v Bolton Wanderers Post-Match Thread

[dave shelley]

There's no way anyone can say a referee that celebrates an opposition goal doesn't go into the match with the intention of cheating us.

I don't believe for one minute Dean was celebrating the fact that Spurs had scored against us.  What I believe he was celebrating was the fact that he'd played, in his opinion, an advantage which resulted in a goal.  The unwritten universal signal for players to recognise when a referee is playing an advantage is to spread the arms wide and yell 'play on!'

So the refereeing fraternity in the football league is anti Aston Villa...yeah of course they are.

[brian green]

Problem is cdb we, and the world can see what Dean is actually doing, celebrating a Spurs goal. But he only sees himself gesturing "play on" then gesturing the scoring of the goal.   Bad judges are invariably in denial about their failings.

[Legion]

[aj2k77]

Gesturing play on from what? Fuck all happened.

[brian green]

The significant detail of the Dean clip is that he maintains the "play on" gesture but with arms held aloft running in a half circle in front of the home fans while jerking his arm towards the centre spot not once but six times.  For good measure he appears to make a comment as he runs back to a Villa player coming back disconsolately for the restart.

[Ads]

I've wondered that. Like they cannot be seen to give us what we deserve less it be big club bias. The referees are consistently awful.

I doubt there's a conspiracy

I doubt there is a conspiracy either, I'm suggesting that they're letting other factors cloud their judgment or confuse their natural intentions.

[olaftab]

I think you are all being harsh on Dean. He obviously did well in allowing play to go on despite our player  trying to pullback Spurs forward resulting in a goal and was entitled to celebrate his own performance with raised arms and the clenched fist pump gesture.  The only thing missing was badge kissing.

[Villa75]

Let's pretend for a moment that referees have it in for Villa.

Why?

We're pretty much an irrelevance, and have been for years. What possible reason would, multiple, referees 'have it in' for us?

[Chris Jameson]

Every single football team's supporters seem to think that referee's have it in for them, they don't.

[XXVilla]

Every single football team's supporters seem to think that referee's have it in for them, they don't.

See also the local meeja.

[old man villa fan]

Villa teams have always seemed to accept decisions better than many teams.  Not sure how much this affects referee's decision making.

[adrenachrome]

I think you are all being harsh on Dean. He obviously did well in allowing play to go on despite our player  trying to pullback Spurs forward resulting in a goal and was entitled to celebrate his own performance with raised arms and the clenched fist pump gesture.  The only thing missing was badge kissing.

Cupping his ear, rocking an imaginary baby or reeling in a linesman would have added a flourish.

[Des Little]

If we got that wanker reffing us again, I'd like to see whoever scores our first goal reinact that 'celebration'.  Then again, he's probably get sent off.

[Mister E]

The significant detail of the Dean clip is that he maintains the "play on" gesture but with arms held aloft running in a half circle in front of the home fans while jerking his arm towards the centre spot not once but six times.  For good measure he appears to make a comment as he runs back to a Villa player coming back disconsolately for the restart.

As a qualified ref, I'm with Dave Shelley on this. Mike Dean saw the defender impeding Spurs' winger, allowed the game to go on and signalled the 'play on' in the usual manner.
As football fans, we do suffer more than most from confirmation bias - looking for evidence that our view is the right one. This is a perfect example.

Having said that, it doesn't stop me having a go at the refs (and don't start me on Phil f*"*ing Dowd).

[dcdavecollett]

Re the chance that Hogan had, Onomah was breaking towards the box to try to give SH an option if he wanted it but was stopped by a Bolton player pushing him over with both hands.

Hilariously -or not- none of the three match officials saw this blatant foul, perhaps confirming in one incident the general standard of their officiating.