Will ref standards ever change?

[apieandpint]

Would the issue be highlighted more, if the opposing team to benefit from substandard decisions, came out and were more public about it? It could be them on the end of a dodgy decision the next week.

The way I see it, if more were to be open about the ref standards instead of brushing it aside should it go in their favour, then maybe it would be taken more seriously.

Would the EFL have taken more notice if Mark Robins had said after the first leg, it wasn't a penalty or in the second leg Forte wasn't offside and they were fortunate to gain from the errors.

[Freeman25]

Mark Robbins justified the penalty in the first leg by claiming they should have had another one after anyway, which to most fans watching the second leg they will have took his word for it. The reality is not only would it have been a different game had they not levelled the game and took the momentum from the unfair penalty but the second one came from a player that was offside heading the ball towards a Notts player's arm so is 100% never a penalty, not even up for debate.

Nolan spoke out about the officials a while back and had a meeting with the head of officials or someone like that and since then the decisions against us got worse, I'm fairly sure the next two games had big calls go against us and we all know what happened in the playoffs.

In my opinion the EFL tried to use Darren Drysdale as a scapegoat, despite him not being at fault for the offsides. Most reasonable people would think that after such an unjust decision going against us in the first leg in front of the Sky cameras they would have appointed someone that at least wasn't considered notorious like Drysdale is, there aren't many referee's at this level who have name recognition but Drysdale is certainly one of them.

Maybe it's going too far to think that the EFL might want the bigger fan base that Coventry would take to Wembley to get through but it's awful fishy.

[The_Don_ORiordan]

Nothing will change as no one gives a **** about league 2.

There’s no money in it. If it happens in the big playoff (championship) perhaps something will change. But I doubt it.

[Airborn Pie]

Would the issue be highlighted more, if the opposing team to benefit from substandard decisions, came out and were more public about it? It could be them on the end of a dodgy decision the next week.

The way I see it, if more were to be open about the ref standards instead of brushing it aside should it go in their favour, then maybe it would be taken more seriously.

Would the EFL have taken more notice if Mark Robins had said after the first leg, it wasn't a penalty or in the second leg Forte wasn't offside and they were fortunate to gain from the errors.

Refs have to start being more accountable, I don't hold with the conspiracy theory, I just think they're crap at our level.

I'll be honest, as an ex player of a good standard, I've reffed a game once and wouldn't do another!!!

[jackal2]

Culture is set from the top.

Many of football's administrators are incompetent buffoons who fail (or are very slow) to address the big decisions or get them right, yet they revel in their status and love to intervene and throw their weight around on trivial matters that don't really matter.

It is therefore little surprise that the people they appoint to oversee the game on the pitch display the same broad traits. They haven't got it right at Premier League level where the financial stakes are huge, so by the time you reach League Two level you're lucky if you get someone who has the basic levels of knowledge and physical fitness required.

The playing side of the game has become ultra-professional, what with sports scientists, data analysis and everything else, yet the officiating side is only gradually crawling out of the dark ages. The obvious evidence of this that the use of technology to increase the number of correct decisions is still seen as an issue to be "debated", while other sports took the lead in bringing in such measures ten or even 20 years ago.

[Freeman25]

One thing that amazed me the other night was that Drysdale made Coventry players leave the field after receiving treatment from a physio in tackles that Notts players received a booking for, one was Biamou when him and Duffy clashed heads and I don't remember the second, possibly when Allessandra fouled someone?

They changed that rule and announced the change a while back either before this season or last - If a player is fouled and hurt by an opponent who subsequently receives a yellow or red card for the challenge, the injured player may be quickly treated on the pitch without the need to leave the field of play.

We did see it happen once this season and most fans weren't aware of the change and went mad but I can't understand why Darren Drysdale wouldn't be aware of it or enforce it, it means that Coventry were down to 10 men twice as a result of being fouled.

[legs77]

We were cheated in both games it is that simple I don’t see how all the major decisions went against us law of averages tells you something will “even” out for you but it didn’t.

The play offs had goal line technology in this year which is a good thing next year VAR will come in for the play offs it has to after what happened to us you can’t have officials guessing on decisions the Forte decision was a disgrace he was nowhere near offside.

The only other solution is league one and two need professional refs no more part timers they just aren’t good enough.

Drysdale is not a good ref but in fairness he wasn’t at fault at Meadow Lane on Friday.

[durhampie]

We didnt deserve to win on the night, apart from a 10min spell in the second half we were dreadful. Nolan got it wrong and once again used the bad decisions as an excuse for the defeat. The best team on the night won...

[queenslandpie]

We didnt deserve to win on the night, apart from a 10min spell in the second half we were dreadful. Nolan got it wrong and once again used the bad decisions as an excuse for the defeat. The best team on the night won...

Over the course of a season things even themselves out. Nolan would do better to concentrate on getting his January window right rather than moaning about ref decisions he has no control over. Control the controllables Kevin! I don't really care we didn't go up. We would come straight back down anyway. Better to really build and go for it next season with some good players hopefully signed in the close season on 2 year deals who can help cement us in league one. We are progressing up again and the refs are not going to change the only thing that might is VAR etc. Concentrate on winning games and playing well not moaning about refs when you get deservedly hammered at home by a better team. I dont think the style of play will change a lot next year and I wouldn't want it to at this level. We just need a little bit more pace.

[i961pie]

We didnt deserve to win on the night, apart from a 10min spell in the second half we were dreadful. Nolan got it wrong and once again used the bad decisions as an excuse for the defeat. The best team on the night won...

Nobody is saying Coventry didn't play better football than us and were far superior first half, I wish we played that way but at the moment we don't. But being the better footballing side doesn't always win you games and they didn't win the tie on their skill etc. It was decided by incompetent decisions by the officials.
The match reminded me of the recent Utd. / City Derby, City were 2-0 up at half time and it could have been more and Utd. were very poor. But second half just like our game Utd scored and you could see City panic. Once they equalised as John Coleman said there was only one winner, we were well on top when Forte ''equalised'' and that decision changed the game.
It doesn't matter who were the better side if that goal stood after 90+ minutes and not 40 minutes it might have been Notts.