Top 10 Refereeing Howlers

[notsosilentbob]

1. Graham Poll: Croatia v Australia (June 2006)
Two yellows equals a red. Unless your name is Graham Poll. The Tring official somehow contrived to book Croatia's Josip Simunic on three separate occasions in the 2006 World Cup Group F decider before remembering that he had a card of another colour in his pocket which needed to be brandished. FIFA took a dim view on Poll's inability to count, sending him home after the group stages. He completed one further season as an official in the Premier League before announcing his retirement.

2. Mark Clattenburg: Manchester United v Tottenham (January 2005)
The Premier League clash between United and Spurs looked to be heading for a goalless draw when Pedro Mendes picked up the ball inside his own half and launched a looping, speculative effort high into the night sky hoping to catch Roy Carroll off his line. The goalkeeper scrambled back into position, but allowed the ball to bounce out of his grasp, over his shoulder and well over the line before he clawed it to safety. But both Clattenburg and his assistant cut short the celebrations of the visiting fans as they waved play on to the utter bemusement of everyone from White Hart Lane.

3. Clive Thomas: Sweden v Brazil (June 1978)
Welsh whistle-blower Thomas ensured his place in World Cup history with an astonishingly officious piece of refereeing during a Group 3 meeting in Argentina. With the 90 minutes up, Brazil were awarded a corner. The ball was swung into the penalty area where Zico headed home. The South Americans believed they had snatched victory, but Thomas had other ideas, having blown the final whistle just after the corner was taken and before Zico's effort hit the back of the net, with the match ending in a 1-1 draw.

4. Dermot Gallagher: Manchester City v Portsmouth (August 2006)
All the headlines after the Eastlands encounter were dominated by Ben Thatcher's crude challenge on Pedro Mendes. The City full-back's forearm smash left the Pompey midfielder out cold, requiring oxygen on the sidelines and further hospital treatment after he was sent flying into the advertising hoardings. But Gallagher opted to issue only a yellow card, much to Harry Redknapp's anger as he raged: "What do you have to do to get a red, kill someone?" The FA, for once, acted decisively, charging Thatcher with serious foul play and issuing an eight-game suspension.

5. Gamal Ghandour: Spain v South Korea (June 2002)
Regular international under-achievers Spain saw their World Cup hopes ended after a number of somewhat suspect decisions from Egyptian referee Ghandour. South Korea became the first-ever Asian side to reach the last four of the World Cup as they eventually progressed 5-3 on penalties, but only after Spain had seen two goals disallowed over the course of normal and extra time. South Korea had benefited from similar good fortune in their previous match against Italy and FIFA were later forced to admit that "one or two major mistakes have been made".

6. Jose Garcia-Aranda: Liverpool v Roma (February 2001)
For any Liverpool fans still smarting over Styles' decision on Sunday, it's worth remembering that the Reds have been the recipients of one or two rulings in their favour in the past. An enthralling Champions League clash at Anfield saw the home side under intense pressure as Roma poured forward looking for an equaliser. And with 13 minutes remaining the Italians thought they had won a penalty when Garcia-Aranda pointed to the spot after the ball struck Marcus Babbel's hand, only to change his mind and award a corner, much to the dismay of the Serie A side.

7. Pierluigi Collina: Villarreal v Everton (August 2005)
Proof that even the best can make mistakes came in this Champions League qualifier. Everton were pushing for the goal that would have taken them through to the lucrative group stages. With Villarreal on the defensive, Everton forced a corner which Duncan Ferguson powered home in typical fashion, but his celebrations were cut short by Collina's whistle. Replays of the incident showed the decision was harsh, as there were no clear infringements. Diego Forlan's late strike ended Everton's involvement and their European campaign ground to a halt as they were later humbled by Dinamo Bucharest in the UEFA Cup.

8. Robert Hoyzer: Paderborn 4-2 Hamburg SV (August 2004)
Paderborn's cup victory over former European Cup winners Hamburg sent shockwaves through German football and unearthed a match-fixing scandal which threatened the very foundations of the game. With Hamburg leading 2-0, young referee Hoyzer dismissed Hamburg striker Emile Mpenza and awarded the home side two questionable penalties, both of which they converted. Suspicions were further aroused by unusual betting patterns surrounding the fixture and charges were levelled at Hoyzer. He admitted fixing or trying to fix nine matches and was sentenced to two years and five months in jail.

9. Mike Reed: Chelsea v Leicester (February 1997)
There were just three minutes of extra time remaining of the FA Cup fifth round replay at Stamford Bridge when Erland Johnsen burst into the area and fell theatrically to the ground. Referee Reed, however, saw the incident differently and awarded the home side a penalty which Franck Leboeuf dispatched to leave the Foxes floored. The benefits of that decision to the Stamford Bridge club should not be underestimated as they went on to lift the trophy at Wembley in May, booking their place in the Cup Winners' Cup in the process, a competition they then triumphed in the following season.

10. Ray Tinkler: Leeds v West Brom (April 1971)
To this day, the mere mention of Ray Tinkler's name is enough to significantly raise the blood pressure of Leeds United supporters. With Don Revie's side battling for the Division One title with Arsenal, the visit of West Brom to Elland Road proved the turning point, with Tinkler's intervention particularly pivotal. Tony Brown intercepted a misplaced Leeds pass in his own half and surged forwards, but with Colin Suggett in an offside position, the linesman raised his flag. Brown and the Leeds defence paused, expected Tinkler to blow for offside, but he waved play on. Brown advanced unchecked, passed to Jeff Astle who scored with ease, securing a 2-1 victory for the Baggies. Leeds won all their remaining games, but missed out on the championship by one point.

[source - sky sports news]

[Laz]

You can add the red card for Boxx (USA) in the semi-final against Brazil in the Womens World Cup 2007.

[SmilerX]

Originally Posted by Laz

You can add the red card for Boxx (USA) in the semi-final against Brazil in the Womens World Cup 2007.

that was the only part of the World Cup I saw and I agree

[coldintheshower]

You can add the spanish referees 90th minute free-kick decision for scotland yesterday

[-Honchy-]

Or we could make a top 10 linesman howlers and add the disallowed Italy goal and allowed Scotland goal...

Clattenberg vs Tottenham, definately number 2!

[Mars]

i think ppl in this line of work always eventually slip up, or end up talking themsleves into a corner,
ppl never notice at the time, the funny bits always come out later on.