Are refereeing decisions finally balancing out?

[Rob17896]

So a few years ago I think it was the worst season in memory for me with how many decisions went against us. Last season I still felt like it went against us more often than not but better than the season before. But this season I feel like finally it feels balanced.

Off the top of my head I can think of the Liverpool game where it didn't go our way and konate should have gone and same could apply for Forest centre back who should have gone as well for a second yellow last Saturday. But we got away with the Doucoure non penalty on Saturday despite Yates pulling him first It probably was a pen. Also Young probably should have gotten a second yellow against Man Utd when conceding a pen but again i felt Martial went towards Young with his leg so bought it, but on balance it probably was a pen. Have I missed anything from this season?

On balance the brands always win. Years back I would never have applied the word to a football team.

 

[ClausThomsen]

There's plenty of decisions where you've seen them given / not given. If you just accept that humans can have a slightly different interpretation of things then there's genuinely very few terrible decisions in the grand scale of how much football there is.

Pretty much all surveys show that all fans think their team gets the wrong end of decisions more than they should. There's an inherent bias in fandom which seemingly removes the ability from many to view incidents evenly. If it's borderline offside then depending on who we support that's the call we instantly make - if we are correct we remember and berate officials for not seeing what was so clear to us, if we're clearly incorrect we very quickly forget and shrug our shoulders.

It's also worth bearing in mind that a few of the seemingly terrible decisions refs make are because they know the current laws word for word much better than the average pundit / fan and are by necessity kind of bound to them. A lot of the time refs are getting attacked for decisions made by IFAB or for contradicting what someone thinks is the law, often based on their understanding from 20-30 years ago, rather than knowing it.

 

[Yorkiebars89]

We will soon find out when the oil barron barcode horse punchers come to goodison on Thursday with Gordon 10 rolls a second goes down untouched

 

[Khalekan]

Young not being sent off is a decision that went against us too

 

[Blackwell Livermore]

Richard Masters : "Howie old chap, go easy on the Eb this season yeah".

Howard Webb : [shocked expression] wha whaa whaaaat? What's going on Richy matey , its the end of the world as we know it.

Rich : Relax old boy, they're gonna be docked 10 points on trumped up charges, don't tell anyone just yet.

Howie: PHHEEEEEWW!!!!

 

[judge]

Thomas, Poll, Collina, Clattenberg are the obvious ones for me, that's off the top of my head. Massive games, massive decisions, pretty much all inexplicable.
There are loads more, especially since VAR, where a 'clear and obvious error' has been ignored or taken to the extreme letter of the law. The 'well it could go either way Clive...It might seem harsh but it could be deemed a 2nd yellow/pen because there was contact. He's entitled to go down...' etc etc. We generally always come off 2nd best here. Then we have the ignominy of being one of only 2 clubs to have a player banned for conning the ref. So, what we are being told is that no other players from any other clubs have done this, aside from us and West Ham! No mention of the apologies from the ref association down the years. When Andy Johnson was denied stone wall pens week in week out thanks to Wenger accusing him of cheating.
Now it's ffp, dirty little Everton, cheating again. The sport is as bent as a 9 bob note. Maybe not in so much as refs having their palms greased, but each and everyone of those decisions that might get 30 seconds, or not even a mention on motd if it is us, rarely go against the SKY 6. However when they do, it's pride of place on Radio 5 live for 3 or 4 days after. You only have to look at the numerous rule changes to domestic cups the past 2 decades, the changes for TV, always in favour of the so called 'elite'. I am gutted that the other 14, and indeed the remainder of the 92 have not told them to eff off and formed a new organisation.

Ref's may not be bribed directly but it wouldn't surprise me if they were 'encouraged' to favour the Sky 6 if they wanted to continue as a Premier League ref

 

[Ring master]

We are way overdue on things even been close to level, the amount of times we have been done over, compared to any Lucky decisions, is not even close