So with Balotelli about to get a

Chicken – I agree it’s not a perfect solution… but I think it’s more fair than the one currently, where Balotelli is on the pitch to score against Spurs but then banned from games against their rivals – potentially weakening City so they drop points in other games – then how is that fair?

I think we have the system we have now and people accept that as the norm and don’t want to change it… but if you were to introduce a new system I think the one I suggest makes more sense than the current one. Certainly it has a more sound justification than – it would be too much effort.

This is true again with offsides… where the rule is made to correct a previous flaw… then another amendment to the rule is made… and then another to correct a flaw that that proposes… and so on and so forth. We are used to the current system, and understand it – but I don’t think that makes it right.

Again it seems a lot of effort for something which isn’t generally regarded as a big issue. This can be misleading too though. For example there are lots of calls for goal line technology – yet goal line incidents happen relatively rarely. Yet offside is a massive issue, diving is a massive issue… yet these aren’t considered as important, certainly there isn’t the pressure to find a solution anyway. It goes back to the point about the media though. Rooney kicking someone will get more media coverage than Joe Blow doing it, but it isn’t right that he is given a retrospective ban and Joe Blow let off. I think the laws of the game should be consistently applied – and fair. I don’t believe the media’s pressure should have such an effect.

MrMortimer

I think the goal-line technology is more popular than any idea to have it for fouls, offsides etc is because any other decision but the goal-line one can still be subject to opinion. Again, i would like to keep it that way. Goal-line technology i'm up for, but i dont want to go down the 5th umpire route where it is still down to an indiviual's opinion. we can slow down the video, change angles but its still not conclusive.

I'm old school where i just think we should leave the rules alone.

I think goal line technology isn’t needed, 99.9 per cent of the decisions are correct… that’s probably higher than any other incident! The trouble is when it does go wrong it’s an important decision – a goal.
I think for fouls you are correct it is down to opinion – and how the referee sees it, as well as how he is reffing the match. For example some referees book one player early just to stop things getting out of hand. While others will wait and then around the 55 minute mark they will think it’s about time to book someone. That’s how it seems anyway.
With offsides though – crucially that is not down to opinion. The interfering part has become confused perhaps – so that could be – but the simple offsides where the linesman flags even though the player is on – that is not opinion. Is a ball playing part offside – that’s yes or no.
I agree about video technology during the game – a lot of people think it will mean every decision will suddenly be right and it will solve everything, but I disagree. IN rugby wrong calls are still made… in Rugby League there is the ridiculous scenario where a video ref can see an incident but is only allowed to report on the direct question asked by the referee on the ground. So if he asks about the grounding… but the video referee sees a foul that should disallow the try before a perfectly good grounding – he is bound by the rules to award the try – in spite of seeing evidence that it shouldn’t stand.
I agree about leaving rules alone – but I don’t see retrospective calls, or appeals as changing the rules as such. Since the game itself wouldn’t be affected.

I totally get your point regarding offsides but where do you stop play to check? Do you stop play & check them only where they have resulted in a goal, or could a team challenge a decision if the lino should have given offside minutes before a respective goal chance has been created & converted? What happens then, do we scrap the latest goal & take the ball back to the original incident? Regardless of how often this happens, it would all need to be covered at outset. And i'm just not sure football, as a sport, really has the time or the need to do this.

Again, there's alot of ifs & ands around this. I'm just not sure i want all the controversy that goes with it.

Mr Mortimer.................................Sendings off (before red card & yellows cards) were always allowed appeals from professional level right down to relevant County FA's.

So it hasn't just crept in or become a slippery slope. I played football at various levels including lower level Football League and also refereed in the late 80's to early 90's at Conference level and this has been consistent in that time re appeals.

That is why referee's reports work to the principle "less is more"............................the less you write in your report the less the player has to go on to challenge the sending off.

Here is a sample from one of my reports after I sent a player off for swearing at me.

In the 57th minute I gave a direct free kick to Harrow for a pushing offence. As Harrow took the kick one of the Staines players objected, shouting at me from 10 yards away "You something aunt! ."

I immediately stopped the game and went to the player, I asked him for his name, he said Tom Smith, I wrote his name down and then told Mr Smith he was being sent off for swearing at me.

He then repeated his earlier comment, "You something aunt!.
Two of his team then grabbed hold of him and pushed him towards the sideline. Mr David Thomas, the Staines Manager approached me in my dressing room after the game and apologised for the actions of his player.


Now there is not a lot this particular player could argue with, especially as he then repeated his earlier comment.

Have had to change some words due to moderation!
Also not proper names etc................"

Obviously what he said to me was a seven letter word beginning with f and a 4 letter word rhyming with aunt!

Chicken - don’t get me wrong I’m not in favour of video technology during the game. I don’t think it will work during a game – I think those who see it as the answer to all our problems are sadly misguided. I think we’re in agreement there.
I think the media builds it up to be a great thing… because the injustice caused by decisions that are wrong are a great story (that and because Blatter is against it so they can ridicule him) but I don’t think it would work.
I think that’s a separate issue to retrospective action though.

Why would it not work, the lampard goal in the world cup woulf of taken ten seconds for the ref to be told that the ball was over the line

So you prefer match and life changing decisions to go on being messed up and open to corruption as they are now ?

Not asking for it to turn into american football but if you score a goal it should count

Greaves
Firstly full credit to you for being as referee – and secondly full credit to you for actually sending the guy off! Too often players are allowed to get away with it that they think they can talk like that – I played in one game where the player didn’t even realise it was against the rules to swear!
Back to the point in question – I’m not sure it’s true that sendings off were always allowed to be appealed. Although I’m not sure they would need to be appealed since they didn’t originally come with a ban in future matches did they?
As soon as the first appeal is allowed – then we are on a potentially slippery slope since logically it is an acceptance that the referee’s word is not final and his decision can be rescinded. Now the rules may have been stagnant from the 80s to the present day and the appeals process not slipped down the slope – but nonetheless the point is still valid.

Wearethefamous – the footage showed Lampard’s goal was over the line. The footage showed Yakubu didn’t touch the ball when taking a corner this season. That wouldn’t have taken long either… should we allow video refs for that too? Why just goal line technology? What about bad fouls and dives?
Offsides happen far more often – why not use video technology for that?
The trouble is goals and offsides are definite… but camera angles can be deceptive. In Rugby League they don’t allow video referees to call forward passes because of this. What about if the camera’s view is obscured?
It won’t be 100% reliable.
And that’s just for the definite ones – what about those which are open to interpretation? What about the ones where the referee decides it’s a yellow but the video ref thinks it was two footed and so it should have been a red?
Games will always have an element of human error. As for corruption – that’s a whole other issue… though I’m not sure why you think video refereeing would be immune from corruption. If there was a video ref wouldn’t he be human and potentially bought off?