Terry’s red another black mark on referee’s record
But following a hasty rewrite along the length of the M6, it’s now about Mark Halsey.
Yes, Halsey, the referee who is a serial offender against Chelsea and has done so much single-handed damage to the “respec’, innit” campaign that he can’t even gather support from the likes of Graham Poll and Dermot Gallagher. The same Halsey who had his decision over-turned by the FA
It was it was the latest incident in a long rap sheet. It was Halsey who sent off Carlo Cudicini, one of the mildest of men, when he was rugby tackled into the net by the delicate Dean Windass. Halsey then, unusually, went on TV to defend “Dean” against the “Chelsea keeper”; this red card was overturned but Halsey bounced back by sending off the same player at St James’s Park.
He was also the ref who booked Drogba at Villa when he should have given him a penalty sparking one of the great early Mourinho rants in England; he sent off Mikel at Old Trafford last season for a yellow card misdemeanour; he sent off Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink for a Melchiot handball at Tottenham (again overturned).
In the same match he missed a punch by Tarrico and didn’t even speak to Sheringham when he sliced open Zenden’s thigh with a high and nasty studs up challenge.
It was Halsey who allowed a Blackburn side to kick us from one end of Ewood Park to the other with impunity culminating in an attempted disembowelling of Cech by Dickov when our keeper had the temerity to save a penalty.
I could go on, but I only have 800 words. Saturday’s performance was beyond appalling — not just the Terry red, but the award of the free kick for the City goal, the penalty that we should have received and the lack of consistency for fouls and cards given throughout the game. I wonder, once retired, will Halsey, like Poll, make his living from after-dinner speaking, telling all and sundry how much he hates Chelsea? He’s a QPR fan by the way.
Despite all of that, we played a stormer, much to my relief, as prior to the match, outside the ground we had to endure countless morons with tea-towels on their heads !lecture us on how our time was “now over”, and how they were the new powerhouse in football.
Those that were there for the final whistle had a lot less to say.
Among the crowd in Manchester was Avram Grant, looking grumpy as ever, and this is not the first Premier League ground he has popped up at this season. Perhaps Manchester City are looking for a “Director of Football” to undermine their popular manager.
And talking of managerial change brings me to the legend that is Gianfranco Zola. As much as I was apprehensive when we were linked with him (insufficient management inexperience), never did I dream that he would rock up at Upton Park of all places.
Much as I hate the thought of the little magic man in the East End the fact that West Ham (they “won the World Cup” you know) are putting all their hopes in the hands of a Chelsea legend must be quite painful for that lot who always like to sing about where to stick the blue flag. And now they have added Steve Clarke to the backroom!
Clarke has given more than 20 years of service at the Bridge, has worked under Ranieri and Mourinho, and held much of the team together when rebellion was in the air after the appointment of Grant. You can’t blame him for wanting to try something else out.
So . . . that’s Agents Wise, Zola, Hughes, Poyet and in Europe Agents Mourinho and Ranieri . . . and there are plenty of other ex-Blues around as well in coaching positions including Dan Petrescu and Roberto Di Matteo.
Looks like the boot room is alive and well, and has been relocated to West London.
United on Sunday, and if Chelsea can win we will be nine points ahead of them. Life’s not all bad you know.
Contact Trish on Trizia_f@hotmail.com
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