This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…
Enough is enough and it’s time for a change.
With the news that Gaetano Berardi’s red card at Millwall has been rescinded, it’s got a lot of people talking about the ramifications.
One of those people is former Leeds United defender Danny Mills. Whilst he might be happy that the red card was overturned, he wasn’t entirely convinced that the league did everything they could in the situation.
What’s he said?
Speaking to Football Insider, Mills said that he wanted more of an explanation as to why the referee gave the decision that he did:
“I thought if you were making a deliberate attempt for the ball or it wasn’t deliberate act to bring somebody down, then it’s just a penalty. I don’t understand where the red card’s come from. I think the red card wasn’t warranted, it wasn’t necessary.
“What I would like, what I’m sure everybody would like, is an explanation as to why he was sent off. What, under the laws of the game, did the referee decide was a red card offence? That would be most impressive to hear, but don’t hold your breath.”
Mills is absolutely spot on with this. There hasn’t been enough of an explanation as to what exactly has gone on, both with the red card and the rescinding of it. Even Leeds United’s statement didn’t go into much detail.
It was a bizarre situation as a whole as the Swiss defender saw red despite barely touching Tom Bradshaw.
What should we do about it?
Seeing as the NFL is currently in town as part of their International Series, it’s time that we took a leaf out of their book.
Every time an infraction is committed the referee announces over the stadium PA system exactly what has happened and what the punishment is.
You could even take the rugby example with ref-link and have the crowd hear exactly what the discussions are.
Even if you don’t want to go to those lengths of doing it as the game is going on, then keeping the fans updated afterwards is the least that they can do.
A simple red card and a statement simply isn’t good enough anymore. It’s time that the governing bodies of football at all levels start treating fans properly.