A lot has happened since my last blog for the boys at Pitch Talk. It has been an extraordinary couple of weeks on this little planet we call EARTH. We have had the terrorist attack in Belgium which cost an awful lot of people their life's. It is worrying that men, women and children can not go about their daily routine now, without the risk of what could happen anywhere. After such atrocities, it is vitally important that people show these so called terrorists that you will never succeed. Now your probably wondering why I am even discussing these people, but UEFA are apparently proposing to play some games in the Euro 2016 Finals behind closed doors, if a threat to a particular game is mentioned. This should not happen in my opinion as it is a defeatist attitude and it only let's the bad boys win. We also have had some cracking games at international level since my last blog and of course it goes without saying some awful refereeing decisions. Instead of my usual look at events in the Barclays Premier League, I have decided this week to spread my net a little wider, I am going to have a look at sensible refereeing in Dublin and a German referee who had a tough game in Barcelona.
When it comes to derby games in SSE Airtricity League, they arguably do not come much bigger than Shamrock Rovers v Saint Patricks Athletic. Last week the two met and the atmosphere was red hot in the Tallaght Stadium, the home of Rovers. In charge for the battle was Tomas Connolly who is an excellent referee in my opinion. His consistency is top drawer and puts in excellent displays on a weekly basis. In this game Tomas showed something I have not seen from a referee in a very long time. I can hear everyone laugh now at the thought that a referee showed common sense, but that is exactly what he did. Having awarded a penalty for the home side, Tomas was quick to realize he may have called it wrong, in fact he had called it wrong it was never a penalty, so instead of making a complete mess of things and allow his decision to stand, he communicated with his his assistant, yes communicated with his assistant, something you do not see in the Barclays Premier League. Tomas had landed himself in a spot of bother but by keeping himself in control, his assistant and himself got to the right answer to the question in the end. In my opinion this was a a brilliant piece of refereeing and a demonstration of how communication between the officials is so important.
It is not very often you can sit down and enjoy a game of football were everything falls into place. Well on Tuesday night that is exactly what happened when I tuned into the Barcelona v Atletico Madrid game in the Champions League, two of the top clubs in Europe. It was also a night were I got a chance to have a look at referee Felix Brych from Germany. I was not to be disappointed as both teams put on a cracker. Barcelona the attacking side of the game and Madrid with their defensive policy. In a Nou Camp stadium that was filled to the rafters I thought it was a brilliant match, add to that, the performance of a referee who was on top of his game and we had footballing excellence. Felix was so impressive in a white hot atmosphere. When the game was threatening to boil over after he sent off Torres, the German showed total control. A referee who keeps composed, whilst everyone around him is looking to cause problems is a top class official in my opinion. This referee let no one sway any of his decisions, this in fact is far more important than the actual decisions themselves. Because if you let the players get to you, all sorts of things can go wrong. He was not fooled by anyone and this helped the game develop into the showpiece it turned out to be. Let us all be honest about the main issue of the game, Torres deserved to be sent off no matter what anybody says. He was given two yellow cards for two stupid tackles. The boys at Pitch Talk will understand what I mean with that statement, as you would have to be totally stupid to get sent off for what Torres did. When the game finished I actually thought that this performance could put the German in with a chance of officiating over this years final. It will take some refereeing performance to beat the one we all saw the other night.
So there you have it, no comments on the Barclays Premier League this week. It was good to have a chance to look at some other leagues and officials. I have no doubt we will be back discussing the Barclay,s Premier League next week. I can only hope we are not discussing an issue involving your team and a match official. Until then have a great week and enjoy your football. Ciao
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