Standard of Refereeing

[ChicagoLion]

The standard is awful and the problem now is that it is so awful its difficult to believe there isn't some level of corruption involved.
The PGMOL set up is a racket where they mark their own homework.

[simon ward 50]

The standard is awful and the problem now is that it is so awful its difficult to believe there isn't some level of corruption involved.
The PGMOL set up is a racket where they mark their own homework.

Suspect Michael Oliver gave himself 10/10 after Saturday's match?

[rob_bridge]

I usually hate blaming refs primarily because it is a thankless task and players and coaching staff do themselves no favours.

That said Oliver was incredibly inept on Saturday - watching objectively it looked somewhat crooked.

[taylorsworkrate]

The standard is awful and the problem now is that it is so awful its difficult to believe there isn't some level of corruption involved.
The PGMOL set up is a racket where they mark their own homework.

I wouldn't say awful. Its not as good as it should be by any means but until we get a detailed statistical analysis it's difficult to say definitively

[Somniloquism]

Was he scheduled for a match this weekend and they removed him, or is it just an assumption he was removed, because refs don't ref every weekend.

[Paul.S]

It’s a tough job and often a thankless one because one set of players/supporters will more than often be angry with them.
Saying that, the standard of refereeing is at a low ebb and the way they apply the laws of the game differ from game to game. There’s no consistency from one ref to another and VAR has made it worse. I think they are scared to make decisions and even more so to challenge VAR when they’re sent to the screen.
Maybe they’re scared to lose their job now it’s become a profession but whatever it is the standards are very poor. It would help if VAR picked out blatant diving during a game and punished players. Maybe then players would think again about throwing themselves to the floor and rolling over which would make refereeing easier.
Just get rid of VAR and see how it goes.

[Neil Hawkes]

It’s a tough job and often a thankless one because one set of players/supporters will more than often be angry with them.
Saying that, the standard of refereeing is at a low ebb and the way they apply the laws of the game differ from game to game. There’s no consistency from one ref to another and VAR has made it worse. I think they are scared to make decisions and even more so to challenge VAR when they’re sent to the screen.
Maybe they’re scared to lose their job now it’s become a profession but whatever it is the standards are very poor. It would help if VAR picked out blatant diving during a game and punished players. Maybe then players would think again about throwing themselves to the floor and rolling over which would make refereeing easier.
Just get rid of VAR and see how it goes.

I'd go one step further and say the way they apply the laws of the game differs in the same match, you can't call a foul and a card against a player from one team and then ignore the same infringement by a player of the opposite team - this is what I witnessed against Luton, mostly when Ollie was being manhandled all over the place.

[Paul.S]

It’s a tough job and often a thankless one because one set of players/supporters will more than often be angry with them.
Saying that, the standard of refereeing is at a low ebb and the way they apply the laws of the game differ from game to game. There’s no consistency from one ref to another and VAR has made it worse. I think they are scared to make decisions and even more so to challenge VAR when they’re sent to the screen.
Maybe they’re scared to lose their job now it’s become a profession but whatever it is the standards are very poor. It would help if VAR picked out blatant diving during a game and punished players. Maybe then players would think again about throwing themselves to the floor and rolling over which would make refereeing easier.
Just get rid of VAR and see how it goes.

I'd go one step further and say the way they apply the laws of the game differs in the same match, you can't call a foul and a card against a player from one team and then ignore the same infringement by a player of the opposite team - this is what I witnessed against Luton, mostly when Ollie was being manhandled all over the place.

They are very inconsistent. People around me at the Villa are confused about the laws of the game now. One minute they’re booking people for taking too long over a throw in or standing in front of a free kick, the next they aren’t.
The handball law is all over the place and it depends on which way the wind is blowing if they award a penalty. The worst one is the flag going up late. I’ve noticed that sometimes it doesn’t go up late and they flag straight away so it’s just very confusing.
Then you’ve got VAR on top of that just to add to the fun.

[paul_e]

Yep, consistency is key, whether you like a rule or not if it's applied fairly you get used to it but when the same incident can be treated completely differently across games or even within a game it's impossible for fans, coahces and players to know what to expect.

On top of that I think the game has a problem with the amount of yellow cards that are given. They are so frequent and often so soft that they become meaningless and teams stacking up 3-4 per game is fairly normal.

[Hookeysmith]

There's so much scrutiny now, that you can tell the officials are relying on VAR to dig them out of a hole. The problem is that VAR are their mates and won't embarrass them.

Well they did the lino at Luton on Saturday - thank fuck

As for general referering - there is without doubt unconscious bias at play and it is not new. In the days when Liv 'The Mighty Reds YNWA' won everything they did it with an alarming number of penalties, Kop end when they needed them. Then of course the redfacedcnut during the 90's encouraging his spit laden yobs to get into refs faces culminating in Jose causing a possible criminal attack in an airport.

I find grovelling apologies after a monumental cock up embarrassing and should only be offered with the game to be replayed - a public "sorry" does not recover 3pts or next round of a cup

[Hookeysmith]

The worst one is the flag going up late. I’ve noticed that sometimes it doesn’t go up late and they flag straight away so it’s just very confusing.

If that rule was taken away then Watkins would of stopped playing, as flag went up immediately, and buried as he did.

The issue was as always - i could see from my TV and at an angle and he was clearly onside so why it took that long to check i just dont know

[villadelph]

I usually hate blaming refs primarily because it is a thankless task and players and coaching staff do themselves no favours.

That said Oliver was incredibly inept on Saturday - watching objectively it looked somewhat crooked.

How a team like Luton, who amassed 45% of the possession, could accrue 19 fouls against over 90 minutes is befuddling. That said, of course some were fouls.. but the standard of what Oliver was calling against Villa wasn't being applied to Luton. We couldn't even get him to put his whistle to his mouth to even consider the foul. It was strange, and I truly believe he was out there to make the Saturday night match interesting.

The refereeing has been poor, borderline very poor this season. A lot of new faces in important positions and some just don't seem up for it. Surprisingly, the one's who have been doing it for years and have become household names, seem to be regressing. Whether its due to rule interpretations they've been instructed to enforce or the safety net a VAR, it's unacceptable and its damaging the game.

I would like to see something like the Two-Minute Report that the NBA uses, to discuss and observe decisions made in important moments. I have no qualms when referees are told to step back and are given a week off, or put behind the VAR screen for a weekend to seemingly reprimand them. We can't have PGMOL "protecting their own" because their interests aren't universal.. while seeking a better/improved game should be everyone's. We don't need defense attorneys, we need an unbiased observation to improve all things rule enforcement. They were so worried about time wasting in the summer and applying those rules early on this season, that they lost focus on the larger job at hand.

[The Edge]

It’s a tough job and often a thankless one because one set of players/supporters will more than often be angry with them.
Saying that, the standard of refereeing is at a low ebb and the way they apply the laws of the game differ from game to game. There’s no consistency from one ref to another and VAR has made it worse. I think they are scared to make decisions and even more so to challenge VAR when they’re sent to the screen.
Maybe they’re scared to lose their job now it’s become a profession but whatever it is the standards are very poor. It would help if VAR picked out blatant diving during a game and punished players. Maybe then players would think again about throwing themselves to the floor and rolling over which would make refereeing easier.
Just get rid of VAR and see how it goes.

I'd go one step further and say the way they apply the laws of the game differs in the same match, you can't call a foul and a card against a player from one team and then ignore the same infringement by a player of the opposite team - this is what I witnessed against Luton, mostly when Ollie was being manhandled all over the place.

I said this on the post match thread but got shot down. Ollie was battered by them with Mengi and Burke taking it in turns to clatter into the back of him. And Chong must think he's still at OT where you win fouls every time you throw yourself to the ground and have a tantrum. Oliver fell for it time after time. There were some truly awful decisions and the one for their second goal was a joke. He had hold of Konsas arm the whole time then won the foul by flinging his arms around. We won and I'm over it but refereeing like that has no place in elite football. Totally inept.

[rougegorge]

The worst one is the flag going up late. I’ve noticed that sometimes it doesn’t go up late and they flag straight away so it’s just very confusing.

If that rule was taken away then Watkins would of stopped playing, as flag went up immediately, and buried as he did.

The issue was as always - i could see from my TV and at an angle and he was clearly onside so why it took that long to check i just dont know

The late flag is annoying when it is so obvious. Also we have incurred injuries as a result of playing on.

Then there are times where the flag doesn't go up at all when it should and then the ball goes out for a corner.

[Somniloquism]

Then there are times where the flag doesn't go up at all when it should and then the ball goes out for a corner.

That is the linesman thinking the play isn't offside*. If he felt it was, he would then flag instead of giving the corner.

*(Or as they are in contact with the ref during play, the linesman stated potential offside for number 10, the ref could always state number 10 didn't move for the ball so he doesn't think it was offside and over rule him).