Crap ref Stuart Attwell strikes again

[Cole’s goal at 2.05, his sending off at 3.10]
Wigan 0/ West Ham 1

West Ham came away from a gritty bout at the JJB with a hard-earned three points last night, but suffered at the hands of more controversial refereeing from Stuart Attwell.

Carlton Cole scored a fantastic goal in the 34th minute, but was dismissed three minutes later when he was given a second yellow for a fairly innocuous challenge. Even Steve Bruce admitted that it wasn’t a sending off, and that Attwell’s approach did nothing to quell the ill-tempered match:

“It wasn’t a sending-off, for goodness sake. There was nothing in it, and the referee needed to show some common sense.

“But I’m afraid Mr Attwell, in my opinion, is not quite ready. And the undercurrent all stemmed from that sending-off.”

26-year-old Attwell is the youngest ever

Net malfunction causes problems in South America

Skip to [6.05] for the juicy bit

Spoiler fans have become acquainted with Brazilian side Botafogo through their love of awful penalties and good old fashioned rioting.

This weekend, the top flight side landed back on our radar after right back Alessandro scored a header [6.05 in the video]. Conventionally, the ball must go between the posts to be a legitimate goal, but Alessandro’s effort reached the back of the net via a gaping hole in the side netting.

The referee - who may or may not have been Stuart Attwell -  allowed the goal, but rival Boavista players complained for nearly ten minutes until the decision was reversed. The controversy rages on, however, as Botafogo’s manager suggested the officials used video evidence to reach their decision, which is currently against the rules.

[101GG]

Worst decision ever? Yes, worst decision ever

Conventionally, goals are awarded when the ball crosses the line and ends in the net bit. Assistant referee Nigel Bannister, however, took an unusual approach this weekend when he awarded Reading a goal for an attempt that went at least two yards wide.

As you can see above, referee Stuart Attwell chose not to trust his own eyes and acquiesced to the linesman’s belief that John Eustace’s clearance ended up in the net. The Watford midfielder ended up with his first career own goal, and Reading went on to earn a 2-2 draw at an angry Vicarage Road.

While the linesman’s decision was very poor, Reading’s unsporting decision to carry on without giving Watford an opportunity to equalise is surely a much bigger mistake.