Graham Poll on Five Live: Man City, refs and the FA

[Plain Speaking]

Interesting piece on Five live tonight <a class="postlink" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b019pkyy" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b019pkyy</a>

Mark Chapman (MC), Graham Poll (GP), Steve Claridge (SC) and Ian McGarry (IM)from about 12.00 to 17.00 link above:
I have made a note of some of the main City points to make it easier:

GP: The basic instruction to referees is in. "If 2 players clash and you cant trust them on their own you should not leave them on their own"...
GP: The FA are inconsistent thats the problem...in what they charge and what they dont. All that leaves the suspicion that, because its Mario "Why always me?" gets charged...
GP: Balotelli in my mind is certain to get a 4 match ban...
MC: Just on Mario Balotelli now Graham, if you were refereeing now, would you pay "special attention" to him during a game?
GP: I would be wary of him because he does react to players...He is very sensitive to players touching him. I dont think he is someone that wants to be or can be managed that well. You can work with some players. He doesnt appear to react to positive comments. Some players will listen to you, some players wont. With Mario it would appear he doesnt listen...As a referee you would keep an eye out for that kind of incident. Youre talking Scott Parker strong tackler, good player coming into Mario Balotelli...as volatile as Pablo de Canio and if you leave them unattended if you are looking for perfection in refereeing that isnt great.
IM: Graham it looked to me as if Balotelli was in a dark mood as he came on the pitch...He had the yellow card just before the stamping incident. He clearly was annoyed at something, probably that the fact he hadnt started the match and Dzeko had played like a drain and still was on for seventy minutes . He looked to me in the mood to do something silly... As a referee you should pick up on that? As soon as he came on the pitch yoy should think to yourself ...hang on I'd better be careful. I dont think Howard quite grasped that. He booked him at the right time I think it was for a challenge on Kaboul...(SC:Assou Okotu)...but then he let it go...
GP. (He talked about when he refereed Ars. v Man Utd when he gave free kicks every 30 sec for the first 5 mins)....thats a way to put a lid on a situation to calm it all down. If you've got someone like Balotelli you see him in the mood you give him a yellow card, the next couple of minutes you watch him like a hawk. to protect him as much as anything..its not to pick on him...It's not to go "I'm going to get him sent off", you can nip it in the bud as soon as a tackle goes in your in there ..bang...thats a free kick
MC: Graham, can you understand why Manchester City fans think there is an anti-Manchester City Agenda at the moment? Ed in Luton, you lot are hyping all this Manchester City agenda. I've had tweets saying Im anti-City which I'm not. But why dont you mention Paul Scholes against Bolton, Glen Johnson taking out Lescott in the first leg of the league Cup. Yesterday there were City fans who thought Scott Parker had a couple of tackles that could easily have been a yellow, but Mario Balotelli got a yellow for nothing realy because benoir Assou okotu rolled over 4 times and Mario Balotelli is Mario Balotelli?
GP: I can understand their view and when you're near the top, you get a little more sensitive dont you? Especially when Man United are only 3 points behind and breathing down your neck. So erm basically if the Man City players dont misbehave they cant be done by the FA and they cant be done by the referees, simple as that. You've got to keep your own house in order rather than looking at other people and what about this one? what about that one? I'd never believe there was a bias within the FA but there is an inconsistency and thats what needs sorting out.
MC: Andrew in Mickleborough has tweeted us, refs do make bad decisions we all accept that but it totally undermines them if the FA make these retrospective punishments?
GP: No I disagree completely
SC: 'Course it doesnt.. dont be ridiculous
GP: No, I'm with you Steve, you cant see everything on the pitch and you are happy if you genuinely miss something and its on the pitch and the FA say did you see it? and you say "no" and the FA say "we're going to do him 3 matches". What I would also like, is what I used to be able to do and I did it on 3 occasions when I sent someone off wrongly, I looked at the video and went "I am wrong please take that into account" and thats been taken away from referees now.
SC: Yes absolutely.

 

[blueprint]

I'd never believe there was a bias within the FA but there is an inconsistency

GP needs to cogitate on what he stated.

 

[Dirty Harry]

IM: Graham it looked to me as if Balotelli was in a dark mood as he came on the pitch...He had the yellow card just before the stamping incident. He clearly was annoyed at something, probably that the fact he hadnt started the match and Dzeko had played like a drain and still was on for seventy minutes . He looked to me in the mood to do something silly... As a referee you should pick up on that? As soon as he came on the pitch yoy should think to yourself ...hang on I'd better be careful. I dont think Howard quite grasped that. He booked him at the right time I think it was for a challenge on Kaboul...(SC:Assou Okotu)...but then he let it go...
GP. (He talked about when he refereed Ars. v Man Utd when he gave free kicks every 30 sec for the first 5 mins)....thats a way to put a lid on a situation to calm it all down. If you've got someone like Balotelli you see him in the mood you give him a yellow card, the next couple of minutes you watch him like a hawk. to protect him as much as anything..its not to pick on him...It's not to go "I'm going to get him sent off", you can nip it in the bud as soon as a tackle goes in your in there ..bang...thats a free kick


What the f*ck and who the f*ck is this clown IM ? No pre-judgement here is there lol and then Poll's response ?
F*ck me, learn to smile all the time Mario, it seems you have a better chance of avoiding cards if you smile a lot and make happy faces.

 

[moomba]

If you've got someone like Balotelli you see him in the mood you give him a yellow card, the next couple of minutes you watch him like a hawk. to protect him as much as anything..its not to pick on him...It's not to go "I'm going to get him sent off", you can nip it in the bud as soon as a tackle goes in your in there ..bang...thats a free kick.

That's disgraceful if that is the case. What he's effectively saying (and what we've all seen with our eyes) is that referees will be quicker to give out yellow cards to Mario than other players. The club need to take this to the FA to make sure this isn't happening as it is against the spirit of the game.

 

[cyprustavern]

If you've got someone like Balotelli you see him in the mood you give him a yellow card, the next couple of minutes you watch him like a hawk. to protect him as much as anything..its not to pick on him...It's not to go "I'm going to get him sent off", you can nip it in the bud as soon as a tackle goes in your in there ..bang...thats a free kick.

That's disgraceful if that is the case. What he's effectively saying (and what we've all seen with our eyes) is that referees will be quicker to give out yellow cards to Mario than other players. The club need to take this to the FA to make sure this isn't happening as it is against the spirit of the game.

I woul go so far as to say its victimisation mate btw how many cards has rooney got this season?

 

[BoyBlue_1985]

If you've got someone like Balotelli you see him in the mood you give him a yellow card, the next couple of minutes you watch him like a hawk. to protect him as much as anything..its not to pick on him...It's not to go "I'm going to get him sent off", you can nip it in the bud as soon as a tackle goes in your in there ..bang...thats a free kick.

That's disgraceful if that is the case. What he's effectively saying (and what we've all seen with our eyes) is that referees will be quicker to give out yellow cards to Mario than other players. The club need to take this to the FA to make sure this isn't happening as it is against the spirit of the game.

I woul go so far as to say its victimisation mate btw how many cards has rooney got this season?

But Rooney is protected by EPPR (England Player Protection Rule)
See also Glen Johnson
Steven Gerrard
Frank Lampard
and even
Joleon Lescott
On how this rule works

 

[city chief is back]

feck them my fellow blues! time to put the tin hats on it will only get worse the closer we get to winning it.

 

[cyprustavern]

That's disgraceful if that is the case. What he's effectively saying (and what we've all seen with our eyes) is that referees will be quicker to give out yellow cards to Mario than other players. The club need to take this to the FA to make sure this isn't happening as it is against the spirit of the game.

I woul go so far as to say its victimisation mate btw how many cards has rooney got this season?

But Rooney is protected by EPPR (England Player Protection Rule)
See also Glen Johnson
Steven Gerrard
Frank Lampard
and even
Joleon Lescott
On how this rule works

Yep no small coincidence that Rooney has not a single solitary card (obviously hes a paragon of virtue as we all know) at a time when the FA are in the process of appealing against his 3 match ban .

Well they have to make out hes not a dirty **** dont they


coincidence ? Yes of fuckin course it is .

 

[Gray]

Don't take any notice of what "Mr Three Yellow Cards" has to say.

The crux of the problem is referees saying later that they did or did not see an incident, get them to take a lie detector test is the solution.

 

[stonerblue]

Don't take any notice of what "Mr Three Yellow Cards" has to say.

The crux of the problem is referees saying later that they did or did not see an incident, get them to take a lie detector test is the solution.

I was alsowondering why thew refs report takes so long to be given to the FA.

Surely the report should be done immediately after the game and not once the ref has watched the sky witchhunt or motd pubdits talking shite.