Former Premier League referee Chris Foy examines decisions from the Championship and also in League One games between Burton and Barnsley, Bolton and Cambridge and Wycombe and Forest Green, and in League Two between Rochdale and Walsall, and Stevenage and Colchester
Wednesday 12 April 2023 13:55, UK
An Easter Weekend special in the Behind the Whistle feature this week, as former Premier League referee Chris Foy goes through a selection of key match decisions from the Sky Bet Championship, League One and League Two action.
Although many decisions made on the pitch are of a subjective nature, Behind the Whistle aims to give supporters of EFL clubs an insight into the decision-making considerations and also clarification of certain calls to provide an understanding of how the laws of the game are interpreted.
As part of a regular feature on Sky Sports following the conclusion of a matchday, Foy will be here to run you through some refereeing matters in the EFL, starting with the below.
Incident: Potential red card - second caution (Watford)
Decision: Red card given - second caution (Watford)
Foy says: There are two aspects to this decision - the initial awarding of a yellow card for dissent, and then the second yellow card shown shortly afterwards for a reckless tackle.
The short amount of time between the decisions makes no difference to the outcome, as both are judged on their own merits. The first yellow card is for a clear act of dissent, with the goalkeeper moving from distance to confront the referee. Once on a caution, you leave the referee with little option but to award a second yellow card when committing a clear reckless challenge, as the Watford goalkeeper did here.
Incident: Potential penalty (Burnley)
Decision: Penalty not awarded (Burnley)
Foy says: The referee initially pointed to the penalty spot but after consulting with the assistant referee, awarded a free kick outside of the box.
This was a very good example of teamwork as the initial impression of the referee that the foul was inside the penalty area was correctly changed to a foul outside the penalty area, following the advice from the assistant who had a better view of the location of the foul. The red card for the Sheffield United goalkeeper was also the correct outcome as he clearly denied Burnley an obvious goalscoring opportunity by fouling the attacking player, and as the foul was outside the penalty area a DOGSO is always a red card.
Incident: Potential penalty (Swansea City)
Decision: Penalty not awarded (Swansea City)
Foy says: In this situation, there looks to have been contact made by the defender on the attacker, however, not all contact is a foul, and the higher threshold for penalising this season means that contact with clear consequence is required.
There is minimal contact and as well as the higher threshold, the referee is also looking at the actions of both the defender and attacker. For me, there are no clear careless actions by the defending player to foul the attacker, instead this is two players coming together - contact is attributable to both and play on is the best option. So, this was a good decision by the referee in my opinion.
Incident: Potential penalty (Barnsley)
Decision: No penalty awarded (Barnsley)
Foy says: With the benefit of reviewing the footage, this is a situation which should have resulted in a different outcome - a penalty being awarded and a red card for the defender due to the denial of an obvious goal (DOG).
While the shot towards goal is at speed and the officials only get one look at it in real-time, the Burton Albion defender's right arm is clearly extended and makes his 'body bigger', preventing the ball entering the goal. A penalty and a red card would have been the correct outcome here.
Incident: Potential penalty (Cambridge United)
Decision: No penalty awarded (Cambridge United)
Foy says: This incident came deep into injury-time and the penalty area was crowded, but the referee ensured he was in a good position and focused at a crucial stage of the game.
Effective teamwork with the assistant referee to establish that the foul was just outside the penalty area and composure in this situation was key to the free-kick being the right verdict.
Incident: Potential penalty (Wycombe Wanderers)
Decision: No penalty awarded (Wycombe Wanderers)
Foy says: Like with Swansea City's shout for a penalty in their fixture, there is contact made by the Forest Green Rovers defender with the attacking player as he tried to get in front of him, however in my opinion there wasn't sufficient contact in the challenge to have brought him down.
Having considered the actions of both players, no penalty was the best outcome for me.
Incident: Potential Goal scored (Rochdale)
Decision: Goal awarded (Rochdale)
Foy says: While decisions such as these, without the benefit of goal-line technology, can be difficult - in this instance a goal should not have been awarded.
The shot was struck from distance and while it's impossible for anyone to be able to keep up with the speed the ball is travelling, the whole of the ball of course needs to cross the whole of the goal line. Having the benefit of replays unlike the officials, you can clearly see on this occasion that was not the case.
Officials are human, and can make mistakes, they take professional pride in making correct calls. In this case, I'm sure the assistant referee will review with their coach and colleagues and bounce back with the aim to always deliver the best possible performance next time out.
Incident: Potential Goal scored (Stevenage)
Decision: Goal not awarded (Stevenage)
Foy says: While this may appear to be a harsh decision it is in my view the best option taken from the referee at an important stage of the fixture.
For me, the Stevenage forward impacts the goalkeeper's ability to claim the ball before Stevenage's No 8 puts the ball in the back of the net. The natural reactions of players are usually an additional clue in these circumstances, and you can see by their reaction to the decision that it is in keeping with their expectation, and I think that the correct call was made.
