Spot-kick award mystifies ’keeper

Dean Brill

“Just a tussle”, explains Brill

ATHLETIC goalkeeper Dean Brill believes it was six of one and half a dozen of the other in the build-up to the Millwall penalty which condemned Athletic to a 1-0 Coca-Cola League defeat at Boundary Park on Saturday.

Under-pressure Athletic had been the better side until the 54th-minute spot-kick award given by referee Andy Haines, following the intervention of linesman David Storrie.

Millwall striker Neil Harris tucked away the penalty, leaving Athletic’s players and fans aggrieved at a decision given when the home side were attacking at the opposite end of the pitch.

Brill (pictured above), who had a clear view of the incident involving Athletic skipper Sean Gregan and Millwall striker Steve Morison, said: “Their centre forward and Sean went up for a header and I know he had a kick at Greegs, who turned round and grabbed him.

“I think the linesman was about to walk away and let it go.

“I don’t know if one of their players had a word with the referee, but he pulled it back.

“I have never seen anything like that. It was just a tussle. They both had a grab, a kick and a pull at each other and it was a very strange decision.”

Defeat for Athletic left them fourth from bottom in League One, a point adrift of safety, and heaped the pressure on manager Dave Penney, who was subjected to boos and heckles from sections of the Boundary Park crowd during and after Saturday’s match.

Chief executive Alan Hardy said: “The manager doesn’t need me to tell him we are having a bad run and he is as concerned about it as the board and fans are.

“But we are only four points away from a mid-table position and the next three games, at home to Brentford (on Saturday) and away to Tranmere and Stockport, are winnable providing, of course, we can start scoring goals again.”

Athletic managing director Simon Corney has publicly backed Penney, describing him as a “a decent hard-working guy” who “still has my support”.