"Do you seriously think that a red card is the more difficult to sell option in this particular instance? Sure, in other instances it may well be, but not in this one."
Where I referee, yes, this would be a hard sell even though it shouldn't be. As I stated I would deal with it every time (and have done so) but the players in my part of the country would not understand why - and didn't when it happened on my pitch. They didn't like the player's action and got a bit aggy but there wasn't the sort of response you get with a two-footed challenge, even though this offence is potentially more serious. A player told the offender "there's no need for that! That's out of order!" but no one actually kicked off.
I have had several mass confrontations after leg breaker challenges, and what is on the video doesn't even register as such on my scale. "2 players from the victim's team ..... trying to have words with the player who did it" is not a mass con. I've had 22 players plus subs, managers, physios and spectators going for it after a particularly bad challenge - that's a mass con! I wouldn't be surprised if that happened here because it's obviously a senior level and I'd expect the players to understand what was meant but they apparently didn't. They were upset but not unduly so, unless it kicked off after the video stopped.
As you say, the match officials left a lot to be desired on this occasion. The lethargy showed by the referee could have exacerbated the situation.
In my incident I was straight in quickly with my whistle and getting him away from the area before anyone thought to have a go, but that never happened. I use a yellow book, so the players thought I was cautioning him, and I heard players state that "that's a bit harsh!" When I then produced the red it went very quiet before the offenders team started having a go at the decision. No one from the victim's team said anything to suggest they agreed with the decision, and as stated I actually had comments from them later to suggest that they felt I'd over-reacted.
As I said, this is a red card, but I had trouble with a very similar incident because the players didn't expect it when it came. Usually you can tell if a red card is justified from player reaction. On this occasion they felt that the action was unnecessary but I was the only one who felt it warranted dismissal, so yes, I "seriously think that a red card is the more difficult to sell option in this particular instance" - but that didn't stop me from doing so.
Where I referee, yes, this would be a hard sell even though it shouldn't be. As I stated I would deal with it every time (and have done so) but the players in my part of the country would not understand why - and didn't when it happened on my pitch. They didn't like the player's action and got a bit aggy but there wasn't the sort of response you get with a two-footed challenge, even though this offence is potentially more serious. A player told the offender "there's no need for that! That's out of order!" but no one actually kicked off.
I have had several mass confrontations after leg breaker challenges, and what is on the video doesn't even register as such on my scale. "2 players from the victim's team ..... trying to have words with the player who did it" is not a mass con. I've had 22 players plus subs, managers, physios and spectators going for it after a particularly bad challenge - that's a mass con! I wouldn't be surprised if that happened here because it's obviously a senior level and I'd expect the players to understand what was meant but they apparently didn't. They were upset but not unduly so, unless it kicked off after the video stopped.
As you say, the match officials left a lot to be desired on this occasion. The lethargy showed by the referee could have exacerbated the situation.
In my incident I was straight in quickly with my whistle and getting him away from the area before anyone thought to have a go, but that never happened. I use a yellow book, so the players thought I was cautioning him, and I heard players state that "that's a bit harsh!" When I then produced the red it went very quiet before the offenders team started having a go at the decision. No one from the victim's team said anything to suggest they agreed with the decision, and as stated I actually had comments from them later to suggest that they felt I'd over-reacted.
As I said, this is a red card, but I had trouble with a very similar incident because the players didn't expect it when it came. Usually you can tell if a red card is justified from player reaction. On this occasion they felt that the action was unnecessary but I was the only one who felt it warranted dismissal, so yes, I "seriously think that a red card is the more difficult to sell option in this particular instance" - but that didn't stop me from doing so.
