Referees not up to the task — Taggart

FOOTBALL phone-ins would barely exist if it wasn't for recurring subjects.

The latest antics of Joey Barton get a good airing week after week, as do calls from fans of the game's biggest clubs complaining that they haven't splashed £50million on some glitzy South American striker or other.

But by far the most popular topic among angry fans is referees and the decisions they make — or don’t make — on the field of play.

Supporters often say what managers cannot. FA charges can stem from stern words aimed in frustration in post-match press conferences, which usually take place in the half-hour cooling-off period managers must observe before speaking to officials themselves.

Despite the 'Respect' campaign of recent years designed to ease relations, tensions between managers and officials seem to boil over as much as ever. The widespread feeling is that, despite the advent of professionalism, referees too often fall short of the required standard.

Athletic have already come a cropper of baffling displays this season.

At Scunthorpe, David Coote — a referee in his second season in the pro ranks — issued a yellow card to Jean-Yves Mvoto for a deliberate handball despite one of his assistants waving a flag for a short-tug the other way.

Mvoto was later sent off for a second booking, depriving Athletic of his services for the Rochdale derby as a result of an automatic one-match ban.

Coote went on to officiate the 2-2 draw between Morecambe and Barnet. No explanation for the odd Mvoto yellow was forthcoming and, privately, the word was that the assessor at the game felt that Coote had produced a decent overall performance.

While accepting that the men in the middle will, from time-to-time, err as humans do, Athletic manager Gerry Taggart believes that referees are simply not good enough.

"I am sure if he goes home and watches the DVD he will reflect that some of the decisions he made were poor, to say the least," said Taggart of Coote.

"It is frustrating. It winds everyone up on the bench and increases the potential for getting sent up to the stand.

"It shouldn't be like that and sooner or later, something has to change with refereeing in this country.

"It is from the top to the bottom, basically. That is not to say they are not trying their best, but some of the decisions made were laughable – or maybe cryable."

Taggart's words can hardly be described as grapes of the sour variety, as Athletic eked out a 2-1 win at Glanford Park.

And in terms of a constructive approach, he argues that clubs and officials should interact more.

"As managers and coaches we are certainly accountable enough and that, I think, is where the mismatch occurs," he added.

"It is OK for a referee to have a bad game sometimes. But the decisions he makes can have an influence on a game. It could have cost us, sending Jean-Yves off, when really we should have had a free-kick for the first booking. Luckily, it didn't, because it was late on.

"It is about competence. I know it is 'only' League One. But it is a competitive division and there is a lot at stake.

"It is up to the referees' association to sort out and I think it is probably something they are looking into, to be honest, talking to the assessors.

"It would also help if there was more communication between those in charge of referees and individual clubs to address concerns."