Aston Villa v Southampton Post-Match Thread

[curiousorange]

'Villa did play energetically and saw a late flurry create a header for Nathan Baker that hit the bar, but for the majority of the game it was piecemeal and frustrating. In flashes there were pelting runs that excited the crowd but no end product.'
This bit is so bad,I doubt you know what it means.

I don't know what to tell you Bert, other than my pieces are edited before they get posted by a paid editor. If they saw nothing amiss then I tend to go with them. I can see what you mean but it says exactly what I meant at the time so I stick by it.

As for Hawkeye's comments, I'll just have to live with the fact he doesn't rate me. Sob.

Curiousorange, I read your report last night and thought it was a good read. I wasn't at the game so can't really comment on how accurate a report it was but it came across as thoughtful and intelligent. Definitely not badly written in the eyes of this amateur.

One point re the penalty from me - I don't blame Halsey at all, I blame the player. When I saw him saying "I didn't dive" on MOTD last night I took that as a sign of him not wanting to get booked for diving, not as an appeal for a penalty. He definitely dived though.

Thank you for your feedback Pat - I don't mind criticism in the slightest and at least Bert has given me a head's up as to where I might have gone wrong. I don't think Hawkeye's ever going to come round lol!

I didn't see the incident live but as I understand it, many who did thought it was too until they saw the replay. But until football accepts that the referee/linesman combination is letting too many mistakes slip by unpunished, it's the officials' responsibility to see everything and the refereeing team yesterday proved themselves to be inadequate at doing that.

I'm very scathing about Nigel Adkins and Rickie Lambert giving justification for the penalty award too - they apparently surmise that if the intent is there, then it should be a penalty anyway because it would have been awarded if there was contact. But then that assumes the ref wouldn't have waved it away, for example. There are countless examples in a season of definite penalties being dismissed. So their argument is wrong - it's not a penalty because there was never foul play to justify it in the first place.

[Legion]

Personally, I would appreciate it if you could continue to post the text along with the link.

[walsall villain]

At the time I thought it was a pen so can understand how the ref got conned. How quickly did the ref blow? The loose ball was wacked over the bar, would he have given the goal if it had gone in?

[mrastonvilla]

From L2 on the lower Holte it was obvious Stevens was nowhere near him. It looked as if he had tripped over the ball or his own feet.

Maybe the ref should have award us a goal when Baker hit the bar, after all his intention was to score.

[curiousorange]

Personally, I would appreciate it if you could continue to post the text along with the link.

No worries.

[wookster]

And like I said nothing will ever change and if you all think about it whats the point of football if players are allowed to cheat?

It needs to go to a panel on Monday morning , If a player is found to have dived , fine the player £100k , the club £100k and a three match ban ,  You will never see another player dive again.

I've said it before, the 4th official is a blatant waste of time and energy.  Why can't he be used, or replaced with someone, in a similar capacity to the citing official now used in Rugbt Union.  They look for serious rule breakers and it would stamp most of this crap out.

[old man villa fan]

Delph improved 2nd half but I just can't forgive him for failing to clear the ball at the penalty incident. The ball was at his feet and he dithered. Unforgivable fuck-up.

Well quite right he did dither and provide a sjhocking attempted clearance  however I also saw  Stevens who was an offender at dithering in clearing the ball as Rodriguez came in and fell to ground.

http://www.footytube.com/video/aston-villa-v-southampton-151696?ref=wv_relbox

I think retrospective bans-a 1 match suspension- can come in for such incidents. I also thought he-stevens- must have touched him. When its clear dive like that players be brought to book. In that way at least blatant diving will be reduced.

I quite understand people going on about it not being a penalty (as it clearly was not) but what about the offside when the ball was initially played through.  From the clip on the above link you can stop the play just as the ball is played and the player is half a yard offside.  Also, you will do well to see Halsey in any of the clip as he was so far behind the play.

For a penalty to be given, the referee has to be certain that he has seen conatct made.  From his position, Halsey could not have been certain because he was straight on to the incident.  From his position, the outstretched leg could have caught him or it could have been a foot away from the Southampton players leg.  As can be seen, it was clearly closer to the latter.  The best person to give a penalty or not, would have been the linesman as he was side on but, there again, he missed the offside.

[dcdavecollett]

The objection to using technology in football is that it 'stops the game'.

For penalties, this doesn't apply -there is always at least a minute between the award and the kick being taken(players arguing, like yesterday, getting the players outside the box and so on.

Therefore, using this minute to ask someone in the stand whether the penalty is legit wastes no time whatsoever!

It also means that the fans know that fair pens will be given and that diving, cheating bastards can be penalised.

So, no time lost and the correct decision made/verified.

Problem solved?

[KevinGage]

You talk far too much sense.

[brian green]

There is no need for the game to be slowed down by technology.   There would simply be a device, a light or whatever which indicates a second look at a decision just like they announce a Stewards Inquiry in horse racing.   The light comes on the play continues and if or until the decision is reversed.   A incident like the Suarez handball would trigger an inquiry of a few seconds while play continued and the goal would have been wiped off.   If the goal stood the game would have continues as normal.

I like the idea of the fourth official being replaced by a citing official.   That would clean up the game for sure.   Much too imaginative and progressive for the FA of course so it will never happen.