SYDNEY FC coach Frank Farina again made football headlines around the country over the weekend, saying it’s Groundhog Day every week in the A-League after a dubious penalty and a dodgy offside call may have cost the Sky Blues maximum points in Adelaide.
Farina’s side were deprived of a potential three points after controversial refereeing seemed to hurt the Sky Blues.
Sports Wizard® has seen refereeing controversy time and again in its work across numerous elite sports and Managing Director, Tony Charge, a keen observer of the A-League, shared his thoughts on the issue.
“Refereeing is so important not just for the players but the whole sport,” he said.
“Equally is the reaction to decisions from all involved – it is something that must be closely monitored and controlled.”
Adelaide United escaped with a 2-2 draw despite taking a 2-1 lead when Sydney was reduced to 10-men after Nick Carle was expelled for a second caution in the 68th minute at Coopers Stadium on Friday.
As reported by Val Migliaccio in Adelaide’s the Advertiser and across News Limited platforms, what seemingly stunned Farina was when referee Strebre Delovski awarded Adelaide a penalty when debutant Anthony Costa and Sydney defender Nikola Petkovic locked arms.
“When you see the replay I thought it was a bit soft (the penalty),” Farina told reporters.
“It’s Groundhog Day for every coach in the league.”
“Every week there is something controversial and to be honest I’m tired of talking about it you just move on.
“You can’t do anything about it so there’s no point talking about it just move on to next week.
“But I don’t want to waste time talking in press conferences about things you can’t change.”
This story originally appeared on the Fox Sports website, titled ‘Sydney FC coach Frank Farina says it’s Groundhog Day every week after another controversial penalty‘ on 3 January, 2014.
