Robbed By Rob Jones

31st March 2024 - Does anyone else hate referees, or is it just me?

Well. I think it's games like this that typify why I created this blog. I feel absolutely sick. Where do I even begin? 

I can't help but get a little philosophical. Why do we watch football? For entertainment I suppose and in our case due to a love for not only the game but more specifically our club.

This game made me realise why I hate football so much right now. For me, I take solace in the idea that for 90 minutes, I can witness something with defined rules, two clear teams and a simple measure of how a game is won and lost. 

In a complicated and often cruel world, the idea that you can escape the crime, corruption and fear that dominates TV screens and media outlets is something that so many of us crave. Football is supposed to be an outlet, a way to switch off and enjoy what is ultimately a game. 

Unfortunately, in recent weeks and today more so than ever, I've witnessed what can only be described as incompetence and possibly corruption of the highest order. West Ham have quite literally been on the wrong end of some catastrophic refereeing decisions and the worst part is, in premier league football the multiple replays just act as clear evidence to prove how wrong some decisions are. Referees are to football, what politicians seem to be in the real world, operating under the false premise that they intend to uphold laws and do what's best for the game when ultimately they seem more often to be self serving and egotistical to a fault. Maybe that's harsh, but when you place yourself in a position of such authority, all eyes are on you, so expect to be scrutinized, especially if you plan on making contentious decisions on such a regular basis.

Hopefully I'll calm down as I write this. 

It began in the second minute with a penalty given against Coufal. Now for this one, I actually accept it's a penalty. I don't like it, but its what the game has become. 

Before the inclusion of VAR and even more so since, it's become common for players to stick a foot in front of another player to draw contact while attempting to kick the ball. A normal foul would usually occur when I try to "win" the ball but catch the player, however more recently we see instances where a player in full control of the ball is found guilty of fouling another player who puts a foot in with the only intention being that they get kicked. 

Anthony Gordon did just that. He was in Coufal’s periphery and if I'm honest, Vlad should probably have been more aware. Either way it still took VAR three minutes to determine the on field decision was correct. Just an all around horrible start to the game. 

Naturally, it seemed we'd be up against it. But we responded well. We seemed to dominate the remainder of the first half, starting with a Michail Antonio equaliser from an incredible Paqueta through ball.

But I grew frustrated, as did our team with the on field decisions throughout that first half. We were on the front foot for the majority of the half, but simply didn't get most decisions from the referee. There were blatant fouls galore and replays to prove them, but for some reason, the ref decided to let everything go.

Most of these decisions related to counter attacks being stopped in their path from professional fouls. In one case where a foul was given, we were then denied the opportunity to play it quickly to keep momentum going. Kudus became so accustomed to being brought down that he bounced up to take a free kick and the ref pulled him back - it was as if Newcastle had a plan to slow down our counter attacks and the ref was gonna help them implement it. It's these little things that crept into the game and stopped us in our tracks. 

There was one particular run made by Kudus in which he managed to dribble and stay standing after three consecutive attempts to bring him down. Well done to the ref for playing advantage you may think, but this run what I saw as a clear fpul that once again wasn't given. This incident in particular may have warranted a sending off as Kudus went clean through on goal, only to be shoulder charged and have his legs taken out by Dan Burn, a decision that wasn’t even reviewed. Instead, we simply lost posession and the ref played it on.

The lack of stoppage and review for these kinds of incidents meant that they were quickly forgotten about and dismissed.

On the other hand, Paqueta clearly slipped at one point and a foul was given against him for apparently haven taken out Anthony Gordon. It was laughably obvious to have not been a foul, but the ref gave it.

There was the elbow from Bruno Guimarães on Paqueta, albeit unintentional, that went un-penalised despite being in plain site of the referee.

I get really bothered by these small decisions in particular as they play a huge role in conversations about player performances, Moyes' tactical setup, in game decisions and so on. These disruptive fouls are probably the easiest for a ref to notice and become accustomed to. If I burst through midfield and get dragged back by an opposing players arm, it's a yellow card, or possibly a first time warning and a booking the next time around. The reason for this is simple - if you don't penalise players, they'll continue to do it. 

I don't have a problem with professional fouls to be honest, they're a part of the game, but even the players who commit them, do so on the basis that they expect a card. By keeping his cards in his pocket, the Rob Jones encouraged Newcastle’s players to continue fouling without consequence. It stunted any fluidity in our play and was completely unjust. Had Bruno Guimarães and Fabian Schär been booked in the first half as had been deserved, it would have changed the game. A player with a card becomes restricted in their output and has to manage their play as a result. Failing to impose this, meant that Newcastle could continue to disrupt play without punishment.

In one instance, Guimarães clearly fouled Paqueta at one end but the ref waved play on and he nearly scored at the other, hitting the bar from a strike outside the box. It should have been a foul and a booking and the refs failure to act could quite easily have resulted in yet another highly contentious incident

We battled adversity for the remainder of that first half and actually managed to take the lead just before half time, but even that was contentious. 

Kudus got fouled once again by Schär, who dragged his shoulder back. I know I'm at risk of sounding like a broken record but this was the type of professional foul that was an obvious booking. It was clear what he meant to do, with no attempt to play the ball, but it was only deemed a foul. In the process of the foul being committed, Kudus' hand brushed Schär’s face, as a result of him grabbing the arm whilst committing the offence. The Newcastle players and coaches were soon up in arms as our quick free kick (which was allowed this time) resulted in a goal whilst Schär was laid down with a "head injury". 

What head injury? Do us a favour everyone, take a look and be honest with yourselves about the absolute mockery that's being made of this rule. Fabian Schär faked a head injury as a result of a finger touching his face. It's a common occurrence that we see all too often where players try to bend these new rules to take the sting out of the game. If you need a rest or want the ref to blow up, hold your head and in theory the ref is obliged to stop play - it's a tactic clearly employed by Lucas Paqueta on a regular basis with varying levels of success.

I personally hate it. It's obvious to everyone watching and undermines the integrity of the sport. A rule intended to allow for an immediate pause in play for potential emergencies is instead being using by players to gain an advantage. A finger brushing your nose or chin is a far cry from a concussion or serious injury. The replays exist, so in my opinion, the evidence should be used to hand out fines upon reviewing footage. Just stamp it out by any means necessary. 

Anyway, we went into the break 2-1 up and I feared that the "uproar" around this incident just before half time would overshadow the fact that the majority of the first half decisions went against us. It seemed to paint a picture that Newcastle were somehow hard done by and I could just imagine how the ref would reflect and potentially come out in the second half awaiting an opportunity to even things up and right the perceived wrong. 

Furthermore, Newcastle had gotten into half time without a single booking despite committing fouls time and time again. Eddie Howe would now have a chance to tell his players to calm down and make the most of favourable decisions. 

Unexpectedly, we scored just minutes into the second half. A Newcastle corner resulted in a ball being cleared out to Kudus, who sprinted away and avoided yet another attempted hack, to continue his run and play a perfect though ball to Jarrod Bowen who finished calmly and increased the lead. 

Even this frustrated me. The goal was fantastic, but top of mind for me was the referee’s failure to acknowledge the obvious attempted foul. This was the clearest cut opportunity to have given a card after playing advantage leading to a goal. These are the kind of sequences that tend to see referees commended for allowing play to continue and then penalising the foul after the fact. But he didn't. It just proved to me that the cowardly refereeing display from the first half was likely to continue in the second. 

And so, we managed a two goal lead while half the Newcastle team seemed to go down with potential injuries, ultimately leading to Eddie Howe using all five substitutes by the 67th minute. Our response was to replace Antonio with Kalvin Phillips two minutes later, a change which clearly signalled our intent to defend the existing lead.

Now a lot can be said about this decision. As we know all too well, substituting Antonio would automatically remove our outlet up front and likely see us concede the majority of the possession, meaning we'd have to sit through a cagey affair for the remaining 20 minutes . That said, with Bowen and Kudus still on the pitch and exploiting the high width, I wasn't too displeased. 

Unfortunately for Phillips, he became the focus five minutes later with a decision that not only baffled, but angered me beyond belief. He was deemed to have fouled Anthony Gordon, with a VAR decision given against him, in similar fashion to the one in the first half, only this time, I felt aggrieved with the outcome. 

Unlike the first penalty decision, where Gordon craftily got to the ball before Coufal, this time he simply wrapped his body around Phillips, fouling him as he tried to clear the ball. 

Phillips had control of the ball and upon watching replays, Gordon's whole intention was to get a foot between the player and the ball to be kicked once again. But Gordon clearly fouls Phillips, leaving studs in his standing left foot as he attempts to clear the ball with his right, which then makes contact with Gordon's leg. 

It's so clear cut to me that it's painful to watch and know it'll be wrongly interpreted and allow an incompetent referee to lead a performative song and dance as he glides over to the screen to review what he's being told in his ear is a penalty. As is always the case, the frames showing the contact to deem it a foul are replayed to the ref without the context of the whole scenario and low and behold, these pathetic excuses for officials all agree and pat each other the back for another headline grabbing decision. The ref raises his arms in anticipation of the Newcastle fans cheers and happily points to the spot. 

Phillips, his teammates and Moyes are dumbfounded. Phillips in particular shakes his head in disbelief. And I can't blame him. It's easy to suggest he's off the pace and the master of his own downfall, but a decision as blatantly wrong as this just kicks him whilst he’s down. 

Naturally fingers will be pointed at David Moyes for bringing him on, but I'd argue, had the penalty not been wrongly rewarded, we'd have maintained our lead and potentially grabbed another goal on the counter attack. 

Look. Decisions change games. 

And that's exactly what this did. A relatively ineffective Alexander Isak was now on a hat-trick after converting a second penalty and St James Park was pumping. Momentum completely shifted and before we knew it, Harvey Barnes managed to not only equalise, but score what would ultimately be the winner a short time later. After the penalty being awarded, it was almost a given that Newcastle would at least equalise and probably win. The decision was completely unjust and we've potentially seen our future involvement in European football jeopardised yet again by poor refereeing. 

As a result, I feel numb. It's easier when we play badly, to accept a loss or poor result. Sure, our poor performances are horrible to watch, but solid performances being undermined by diabolical refereeing displays seems to have become par for the course and its such a bitter pill to swallow. It's disgusting to see this level of injustice week in, week out. The refs are only getting worse and not a single thing is done about it. 

As if to rub salt in the wounds, once his decisions let Newcastle back into the game, Rob Jones was more than happy to dish out inconsequential cards like they were going out of fashion. Yes, the man who was too afraid to book a single Newcastle player in the first half, all of a sudden had a thirst for instilling discipline. Only one card was for a foul though - ironically, Anthony Gordon was handed a yellow in the 80th minute for pulling back Kudus as he set off on another run, something that was seemingly allowed to occur for the entirety of the game prior, without punishment. 

Beyond this, he booked Harvey Barnes for celebrating, Isak for dissent and sent off Gordon for a second yellow for kicking a ball away. I mean holding players accountable is almost pointless if you decide to start doing so with a 94th minute red card. Yes, in the modern day premier league, these are the acts deemed card worthy. Don't worry, fouls are allowed, just don't celebrate too much!

So there we are, it's happened again.

A brilliant west ham performance, completely overshadowed by the sheer incompetence of referees. One thing's for sure, regardless of player performances, there'll always be a referee waiting in the wings to spoil everyone's weekend for them.