What is it with Phil Dowd?

[cheltenhamlion]

I don't think Dowd is anti Villa, he is just a dreadfully poor excuse for a referee.

He got the chance to bottle out on sending Herd off as the ball stayed in play. If Holt had fallen to the turf, as he did without sanction for the rest of the game, Herd was gone.

That said his initial yellow was a joke and Dowd backed himself into a corner with the shite decision to book him in the first place.

As we saw with Herd last season, Dowd awards based on what he thinks might have happened as opposed to what he has actually seen.

As for Bennett, if it was the other way round, I would have been calling for the opposing player to go.

The league cup final still pisses me off though. I genuinely believe that, had the Vidic incident occurred at all square with ten minutes left, we wouldn't have even been awarded the penalty.

My take on it was that Dowd made a judgement that Man Ure had plenty of time left to win the game and therefore gave the penalty as he was unlikely to feel the wrath of Ferguson with this in mind.

You only have to look at what they got away with for the rest of that match. There was only one team he was going to allow to win that.

[sonlyme]

I wasn't really suggesting that Mr Dowd is a cheat - or indeed incompetent.   I was suggesting that referees can hide behind the 'letter of the law' with impunity - while the paying customer (which is what we are) is left to fume without explanation.

It is the practice of not explaining their decisions that I find annoying and disrespectful.  It is a hangover from the amateur days - and they are no longer amateurs - they are highly paid professionals - with a governing body - that body should compel a post-match referee statement on contentious decisions.

I see many of you were so disappointed with our performance that you have let your anger spill out onto silly Joe.

Yes - he was foolish - and yes it was a foul - my question remains however - - Was that handbags tangle really a red card offence?  Did that particular foul deserve a sending off.  Because that is the reality of second yellow cards.   Now some of you may say - yes because Joe fouled him and the foul was worthy of a yellow card - in which case I suggest you apply to the FA for a referees licence - because you are a natural at letter of the law thinking.

But how does that attitude sit with not sending off the over aggressive Herd who committed two worse tackles?  Herd was indeed fortunate - yet this only reinforces my point.

It is all very much a matter of judgement this law business - and as such requires some explanation as to the whys and wherefores if referees are to be really respected.


As for the Wembley Vidic issue - I appreciate how some of you feel it doesn't matter because we weren't good enough - and that Man Utd had a man sent off against us weeks earlier and it made no difference.  I disagree.  Here are the excellent Martin Samuels thoughts on Vidic at Wembley ...

United had Nani dismissed at Villa Park, after 29 minutes when the scores were tied at 1-1 and that was the score at the end.

So had the scores also stayed the same when 10 played 11 yesterday, Villa would have won 1-0. Plus, there is considerable difference between losing a nippy winger with 61 minutes to go and the most experienced centre-half with 86 minutes to survive. To replace Vidic, United would have had to introduce Wes Brown at the expense of a
midfielder: Ji-Sung Park, perhaps, or Antonio Valencia, who set up the winning goal and won man of the match.

I tend to agree with him.


Red cards are big decisions.  They can kill a match.  They should not be issued at a whim - for personal reasons - for trivial occurrences.  How many tournaments have England had blighted by pedantic 'officiating'.  The law is about judgement and the judge in football is the referee.  He can shape the game for the better or the worse - and for that power he should show the courtesy to make a statement regarding his decisions during the match.

Chelsea vs Man Utd - bad decisions - no explanation.

Everton vs Liverpool - bad decisions - no explanation.

This is about more than Villa - this is about the game.


Yes Villa were poor against Norwich - but they came to play nine men behind the ball and stifle the middle - they succeeded in the main.

But watch our first goal again - against the run of play - not a fluke - not a hopeful glancing header from a set piece - or a deflected toe poke - it was pass then move then cross then control then sublime finish.   And I mean sublime finish.

Don't tell me if we'd have had our full compliment on the pitch we wouldn't have scored again instead of enduring a battering.  Because I won't believe you.

The Red card tilted the game - and I just want Professional referees to explain their decisions post match - so there can be no doubt as to their thinking - because the consequences for clubs, fans, and whole communities can be devastating.


On a more personal note - Cheltenham

As we saw with Herd last season, Dowd awards based on what he thinks might have happened as opposed to what he has actually seen.

I think you are bang on here.  Mr Dowd does a lot of joking and bantering with the players - then pulls his 'I'll get you Butler' face if they protest innocence. 

In a way his refereeing style is that of an unsure, over-friendly shop floor supervisor - swinging from lax indifference to harsh over-reaction.  Am I your friend?  Or am I the gaffer?

His body language seems to be telling me that he suspects the players of disrespecting him if they plead innocence - and he gives it the 'you'll have to get up early to trick Chester T Washington' attitude.

I think he does give awards based on what he thinks has happened - and more than that - on what the players intention was.  That is to say - I think Dowd officiates not just on what he sees - but on his pre-existing 'insight' into players minds - Dowd can see what they were really up to - while the rest of us struggle with only the world available in the visible spectrum.

And so Joe was booked second time more for daring to foul anybody at all and get away with it - which is disrespectful in Mr Dowd's eyes - hence the over-reaction leading to the Red Card.
UTV

[paul_e]

I think the Bennett 2nd yellow could be given, I don't think there's definitive yes or no to it but I side on it being a touch soft.

Herd, the slide was a yellow but it balances out with Dowd having given him a yellow for 'persistent fouls' after he'd conceded 2.

What upset me most though was that he gave 2-3 fouls against Benteke when he leaned on their players in a challenge but he let Holt and Tettey do the same all game without a single foul being given.  There was 1 midway through the 2nd half when Vlaar spanked it about half a mile in the air where Tettey pushed Herd in the back twice whilst they were getting into position and Dowd completely ignored it.

[Clampy]

Linesmen need to play a bigger part though. In our game in the 2nd half, Bent was barged off the ball and although Dowd got a lot of stick for not giving anything, i'm not sure he actually saw it but the linesman definatley would have. 

One boooking offence i would like to see brought in is celebrating in front of opposing fans. Man Utd have a habit of doing it. It's crazy that you can get booked for celebrating a goal in front of your own fans if you take your shirt off, but it's ok to celebrate a goal in front of the opposition fans and cause a near riot and in the case of the Chelsea game, someone to get injured.

[glasses]

I just think he is a shit referee. He wrongly sent Herd off last season, which has been mentioned, but in that game Hutton should have gone for the horror tackle on Long.

On Saturday he got the Bennett one right IMO, but I can see the reasoning behind thinking it harsh, whereas Herd deserved to go for the second booking, and they should have had a penalty.

As for Wembley, I will never forgive him. As for the first minute in a final bollocks, what happens when someone comes on as a sub in the 51st minute and clobbers someone in his first minute? He robbed us of a massive advantage in that game.

Shit ref, fat Wanker.

[curiousorange]

Bennett deserved to go, and in fact I think Dowd did us a favour there since the lad is out of his depth and Lambert now has a decent excuse to 'rest' him for a while.

I thought on Saturday that Dowd was piss poor though. I think he and Grant Holt were organising a fat lads night out with their chummy chats. And Norwich were as rough as Villa in the main. I don't blame the ref for the draw, but he was still shite.

What depresses me is that every time a c*** of a ref retires (Durkin, Bodenham, Elleray, Winter, Rennie, Poll) there's always an even bigger one working his way up to take his place.

[Risso]

Talking of crap refs, it'll be interesting to see what happens to Clattenburg and the accusations of racist language. 

[Ads]

If Vidic had been sent off, Owen would have been substituted and wouldn't have been on the pitch to score the equaliser.

[nigel]

I just think he is a shit referee. He wrongly sent Herd off last season, which has been mentioned, but in that game Hutton should have gone for the horror tackle on Long.

On Saturday he got the Bennett one right IMO, but I can see the reasoning behind thinking it harsh, whereas Herd deserved to go for the second booking, and they should have had a penalty.

As for Wembley, I will never forgive him. As for the first minute in a final bollocks, what happens when someone comes on as a sub in the 51st minute and clobbers someone in his first minute? He robbed us of a massive advantage in that game.

Shit ref, fat Wanker.

Hutton played, and took, the ball with a cruncher of a tackle.
Let's be honest, if Paul McGrath had done a tackle like that we'd have been w**king ourselves silly over it. Just because it was Hutton, poor as he was, doesn't make it a foul.

[PeterWithesShin]

It was a foul. If you win the ball and then take out the opposing player like this, it's a foul. It's why Long was out for about a month IIRC.

[Legion]

It was a clear foul, a nasty challenge and he should have been sent off.

[Clampy]

I'm not a Hutton fan by any means but i honestly thought that he went for the ball in that Albion game.

[lovejoy]

Going for the ball and not getting it is still a red.

[nigel]

I'm not a Hutton fan by any means but i honestly thought that he went for the ball in that Albion game.

Hutton is an unpopular player so becomes an easy target.

Like I said, had it been McGrath, Cowans, Mortimer, Petrov, Vlaar, or any other popular player making that tackle we wouldn't be having this discussion.

[PeterWithesShin]

I'm not a Hutton fan by any means but i honestly thought that he went for the ball in that Albion game.

Hutton is an unpopular player so becomes an easy target.

Like I said, had it been McGrath, Cowans, Mortimer, Petrov, Vlaar, or any other popular player making that tackle we wouldn't be having this discussion.

Had it been Stephen Carr on Gabby I doubt we'd be having this discussion either