It’s the controversial decision that will cause arguments for years to come.
It’s the biggest issue in Australian sport right now, and a decision that will debated for years to come. Was it the right decision to give Brisbane Roar a penalty in the Hyundai A-League Grand Final?
What do you think? Have you say below…
Yes
Jarred Gillett is probably the most vilified man in Australia today (or maybe he shares that with Besart Berisha) but it-s his job to make the decisions and he made the right one.
While everyone-s first reaction was that Berisha had either dived or tripped over his own feet, the replays showed that there was contact from Glory midfielder Liam Miller.
Just as Berisha pulls his right foot back, Miller clips his ankle, and it-s enough to knock the Albanian off-balance, denying him a clear goal-scoring opportunity.
It was painful for Perth and all their fans – but ultimately the right decision, and Jarred Gillett and his assistant referees should be praised for their decisiveness under extreme pressure.
Matt Smith, Brisbane Roar captain: “I didn-t see the replay til this morning, from the way I saw it, his left heel was definitely clipped which ultimately led him to be off balance.”
Shane Stefanutto: “The referee has one chance, he has one moment, we all have a second to look at it – and when I saw it, I thought penalty. “
Besart Berisha: “It was a touch, I lost my balance, it was a penalty.”
Robbie Slater, Fox Sports commentator: “It was a clear cut, 100 per cent penalty. It was harsh, I thought Perth had done enough to go to extra time but that was sloppy defending.”
No
Anyone who thought that was a penalty is kidding themselves – or at least looking through orange tinted glasses.
At best, Berisha horribly misjudged his swing and threw himself off balance at the moment when he needed to be composed and clinical; at worst, he felt the slightest touch of Miller on his ankle and reacted by rolling theatrically to the ground, then jumping up and running away like he-d already scored the winner.
Bad sportsmanship doesn-t cover it.
And the referee didn-t just let down Perth Glory and their fans, he let down everyone watching and hoping this Grand Final would be the game to help Australian football forget some of the recent traumas.
Instead, it probably put the code back 10 years.
Steve Pantelidis, Perth Glory: “It-s obvious it wasn-t a pen, he had an air swing and he missed.”
Ian Ferguson, Perth Glory coach: “I thought it was an air swing and he-s given it. There-s nothing we can do and we-ve lost a grand final.”
Tom Smithies, Daily Telegraph: “The problem is that at no point did the contact look enough to knock a player off balance, and that is the criterion for awarding a penalty.”
