I watched the highlights on Quest last night. I can understand referees missing things, the HRK handball for instance. I can even understand that in today's football how he interpreted Ferguson's attempted tackle as a sending off, though I felt it harsh. What I can't grasp is how anyone could give a penalty like the one he did. I won't describe what happened as I'm sure everyone has seen it. What I will say is I can't grasp how anyone could be under the impression that a foul was committed. Even Bowyer called it "soft". A Sunday league ref making his debut wouldn't have given it. The reporter on Sky Sports News was stunned by it as well.
There was another bizarre occurrence: Bilic sending Brunt on for his seasonal debut for the last few minutes( although only 3 on the clock it turned out to be ten) whilst leaving Townsend on the bench.