Referees mic'd up.

[The Edge]

Just watched this for the first time on Sky Sports. Presented by Michael Owen and Howard Webb. Quite interesting to hear the interactions between match officials and Stockley Park. One thing that really grated on my nerves was the chumminess of the whole thing. It's clear from the conversations that it's become an exercise in mate's covering their mate's arse. They discussed Durans sending off at Newcastle and the two "assistants" at Stockley Park were both of the opinion that it was worthy just a caution. The match ref "Tayls" came on and said "he's (Scharr) holding himself somewhere else (his groin) so I'm calling it a red" Cue his Stockley Park mate's agreeing with him instead of correcting him and Webb and Owen backing up Tayls sending him off for dangerous play and not a mention of his comment that Scharr was holding his bollocks when he absolutely wasn't. VAR is a sham and so is that programme.

[Somniloquism]

Not sure what VAR was supposed to be "correcting" on the decision by the ref once he had made it. I agree he made it wrongly based only on one other part of the body being held for an incident not seen, but they couldn't show no studs hitting Schar which would have the requirement for an obvious error by the ref.

[papa lazarou]

If any referee/VAR discussion includes wording referring to a player holding a part of his body we are in deep shit.

[Somniloquism]

If any referee/VAR discussion includes wording referring to a player holding a part of his body we are in deep shit.

Yep, I felt that was the issue. VAR did mention the left foot catching the glute before the right foot caught the back, but I don't think VAR would have upgraded it based on the discussion on the field going yellow until Taylor decided holding another part of the body was  a red instantly.

It did make a mockery of Dermot stating that Taylor "really took his time before making the decision" in the previous ref-watch when he literally jumped straight to red based on him holding somewhere else when he might have been holding it because he had tweaked his muscle landing.

[alan_clarke]

The ref guessed and told his VAR colleagues that'd he'd reverse it he was wrong. But given the slight subjective nature of it they were never going to reverse it. It should have happened the other way around - let it go and let VAR check if for any blatant violent conducr.

As for Webb in the studio, he completely ignored the point that Owen raised about Duran's left ankle collapsing under him when he planted it

[Somniloquism]

Sky didn't pick up on anything. It is a shame they don't have the guy who presents Ref watch as he might have asked.

"Hold on Webby, you just stated the ref gave the red card because he saw the challenge, yet from the audio he only gave red because he saw the player holding another part of the body. That doesn't sound like it was the foot on the back or he actually fully saw the challenge".

[The Edge]

Not sure what VAR was supposed to be "correcting" on the decision by the ref once he had made it. I agree he made it wrongly based only on one other part of the body being held for an incident not seen, but they couldn't show no studs hitting Schar which would have the requirement for an obvious error by the ref.

They could have corrected him that Duran did not kick him in the groin which was the referees perception. If they still thought it was a red card for the contact of Durans boot on Scharrs back then fair enough but the audio implies that Taylor sent him off for a kick in the groin.

[The Edge]

If any referee/VAR discussion includes wording referring to a player holding a part of his body we are in deep shit.

Yep, I felt that was the issue. VAR did mention the left foot catching the glute before the right foot caught the back, but I don't think VAR would have upgraded it based on the discussion on the field going yellow until Taylor decided holding another part of the body was  a red instantly.

It did make a mockery of Dermot stating that Taylor "really took his time before making the decision" in the previous ref-watch when he literally jumped straight to red based on him holding somewhere else when he might have been holding it because he had tweaked his muscle landing.

Or simply that his knackers were caught in his pants and he was adjusting them.

[Monty]

The whole show is an arse-covering exercise. A sham. Webb is the kind of perfect apparatchik who'd do really well under Franco.

[eamonn]

Bit dark...

[LeeB]

The whole show is an arse-covering exercise. A sham. Webb is the kind of perfect apparatchik who'd do really well under Franco.

They all are, they self-select the same kind of character over and over again.

They put me in mind of Qing dynasty eunuchs.

[UK Redsox]

The whole show is an arse-covering exercise. A sham. Webb is the kind of perfect apparatchik who'd do really well under Franco.

They all are, they self-select the same kind of character over and over again.

They put me in mind of Qing dynasty eunuchs.

Their first couple of singles were great. Classic balls-out, old school punk

[Lsvilla]

What I can't get over is how frantic it all seems. Taylor is seemingly talking to Villa players (presumably Ginny) when he should be in dialogue with Stockley Park. He's not even listening to them. Compare to the clear and lucid exchanges between Ref and TMO in rugby. The whole process is a shambles led by the incompetence of those operating it, who are then solely focussed on covering for each other. No way Salah / Kane go in that incident.

[Demitri_C]

I bet if thats bruno Fernandes he would have just about got a yellow or no booking

[LeeB]

What I can't get over is how frantic it all seems. Taylor is seemingly talking to Villa players (presumably Ginny) when he should be in dialogue with Stockley Park. He's not even listening to them. Compare to the clear and lucid exchanges between Ref and TMO in rugby. The whole process is a shambles led by the incompetence of those operating it, who are then solely focussed on covering for each other. No way Salah / Kane go in that incident.

Kane 'tackle' on Rogers in the game just a couple of months back was far worse and there was intent.