Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna risks being handed a fine over comments he made about referee Stephen Martin disallowing the Marcus Harness goal.
The Town manager says the official cost his side League One victory following Saturday afternoon’s 2-2 home draw with Barnsley at Portman Road.
After Will Aitchison’s stooping header had cancelled out Conor Chaplin’s fine free-kick finish in the first half, the hosts went back in front through Sam Morsy’s cool 70th minute finish and soon had the ball in the net again through Marcus Harness.
Martin controversially gave a foul against Harness and Barnsley went on to level things up through Callum Styles’ header at a corner.
Ipswich tried to get a winner come the closing stages but couldn’t find a breakthrough with George Edmundson seeing his effort smashing the post, Bradley Collins had to keep Kane Vincent-Young’s effort out with a smart and Sone Aluko’s strike was blocked on the line.
Who’s the referee? Make sure he gets punished because that is disgraceful.#ITFC https://t.co/iBMzPaHxup
— The72 – We Love the #EFL (@_The72) August 28, 2022
72′ Could, maybe should be a third Ipswich goal.
Marcus Harness looked to have finished a neat move, but he’s punished by the referee for something or other.
🚜 2-1 🅱️
— Barnsley FC (@BarnsleyFC) August 27, 2022
“It’s frustrating,” said McKenna via East Anglian Daily Times. “I think it’s obvious what the main frustration is about. The decision of the referee has cost us the game, for me.
“It was a clear goal, it was 3-1, it was what the players and the crowd deserved from the energy that they gave. But we lose the two points on a decision that I thought was really poor and really in-fitting with the performance of the referee in general. I thought he was much too keen to get involved in the game right throughout, he wanted to be actively involved, he wanted to make big decisions all the time.
“I thought it was a really good game between two good teams, played in the right spirit and it needed to be refereed in a better way to allow the game to flow.
“I think it needs to be looked at to be honest. This is the first time I’ve ever spoken about the quality of the refereeing and I don’t want to speak too much. I think they’re all really good guys, we speak with them before and after the games, but I really do think they need to look at who is designated to referee the games here at Portman Road. I think it’s a different challenge, it’s 25,000 people, it’s an intense atmosphere and it needs referees with the experience and the personality to come here, stay calm, not get involved and allow the game to flow and to not make unnecessarily big decisions.
“We don’t want any help, we don’t want any home decisions, but we do want the level of the referee to match the level of everything else going on. I do think it needs to be looked at who is designated to referee our games here at home. Maybe some of the other clubs in the league would say the same. I think that was a big part of the frustration today and the decisive part of the result.
“I’ve not spoken to the referee, to be fair. I don’t know him. I’m not sure if we’ve had him before. It’s not anything personal, it’s just about his level of performance today and, from other things I’ve seen in previous games, it needs to be a referee of a high level that comes here for our games.”
Asked if he felt his team should have been awarded a penalty at towards the end of the first half, when Leif Davis tangled with Luke Thomas, McKenna said: “I haven’t seen it back. It looked like a penalty at the time. I thought there were so many bizarre decisions out there.
“Usually you expect more decisions as a home team. We don’t want them and we’re not asking for them, but that’s the way the decisions usually go, from my experience, when you’re playing in a big stadium in front of big support. Today it was as almost as if the referee was trying to make the opposite point and make big decisions against the home team and against the crowd and maybe had a reason for that.
“That was the case right the way through the game and was the case for what would have been a decisive goal in the game.”
Asked for his overall assessment of his team’s performance, McKenna said: “Pleased. I thought we did more than enough good things to be happy with the performance. It was a difficult game against a good team.
“First half was never going to be a case of creating lots of clear cut opportunities. They came to defend, first and foremost, and they do that well. Michael (Duff) is very good at setting his teams up in that way. We were patient, we had good tempo, we got to good areas, we needed a bit of magic to open the scoring and the disappointing thing is that we didn’t build on that momentum.
“Second half I thought we created more than enough chances against a team who are really, really, really deep at that point. We did lots of good things in terms of finding the balance between patience and switching the play from side-to-side, but also putting crosses into the box and arriving for the first and second ball.
“We hit the post, had one cleared off the line, there was a great save from the goalkeeper, a goal that should have stood, we scored a very good second goal… this against a team who have just come down, have lots of good players and a good new manager. I think we have to be happy with the performance and the general direction of travel of the team.”
Barnsley manager Michael Duff said as per EADT: “I thought it was a good game. It’s very rare you enjoy it but I enjoyed it all apart from the last ten minutes. We have had bad luck recently then with two injuries in the first half and the first goal that goes in, you’re thinking ‘here we go’. We played Wednesday then Saturday at top of the league.
“Last week (at home to Wycombe) we went 1-0 down and absolutely buckled. We went behind twice today then got back in it. We showed resilience.
“At 1-1 we had big chances to take the lead. Ipswich scored against the run of play and didn’t have to do much to do a lot to score the second goal for all their good football. But we got back in it then had to dig in and we were hanging on.
“We have bad luck with referees, own goals, injuries, that is the fifth goal we’ve conceded outside the box this season.
“The one that hits the post right at the end, we might have earned that little bit of luck.
“You’re not going to come to top of the league and not to have to dig in.
“I don’t know where the referee has got eight minutes from, even their fans were surprised. Then he played eight and half minutes and let them take another corner.”
Fans gave their thoughts as the Ipswich boss risks a fine over comments about the referee disallowing a goal from Marcus Harness…
@bolton2021: It’s every week the refs are ruining football
@itfcben7: Steve Martin mate. Has a history of being poor in the champ so now in l1
@ForeverARed82: As a Barnsley fan it’s nice to get abit luck for a change abit Harsh to disallow it but I ain’t complaining
@BacktoDack: We were robbed #itfc
@Ingham13: Ref had a mare here.
@JamesCawthorn13: Absolutely nothing wrong with this goal. The officiating in that League is next level dogshite.
@PaulPdep: Steve Martin. He had an absolute shocker yesterday but this was the icing on the cake!
@Richard00130585: He’ll get relegated from league one to league two, having already been relegated from premier to championship to league one… it’s a disgrace that this is what we have to put up with in the football league
@DanSharpe42: Looked more a penalty than foul to Barnsley!
@RONOCx: One of the worst decisions I’ve ever seen, not only has that cost us 2 points it also encourages defenders to go down easily and dive which is dangerous
@ShakeyStephens: If anything should have been a high foot on Harness
@GrahamSaffery: Kept off twitter to calm down, as a qualified ref, I’m trying to see all sides and not be a subjective town fan, but that is awful decision and can’t be justified on any level
@LP96__: Absolute shambles of a decision
@Martyn1988: Fucking shambles of a decision @EFL. Year after year the officials are costing teams valuable points. Disgraceful #itfc
@AwayDaysBeer: All biceps no brains this ref 🚽
@RyanSquirrell1: Watched this live and watched this back 20 times and still have no idea why this wasn’t a goal?! Anyone in SBR have a better view than me as Harness didn’t appear to touch him??
@GarethKin1: Absolutely nothing wrong with the goal 😔⚽️🚜👍
@DanShelcot: The defender is making no attempt to play the ball, simply trying to block Harness off, and it doesn’t work, ridiculous decision to disallow
@rossinhosmith: ow has that been ruled out? Wow. Absolutely shocking officials in @EFL
@zondervan84: Er, why was this not given?!!!
@Martin22821922: Nothing wrong with that, ref your a joke, he might aswell put on a red shirt today
@lukewoodzy: As the ref there is NO WAY you can look back at that and believe you have made the correct decision 🤦♀️
@insignenation: Gets kicked in the head, pulled down by another and still scores yet he’s made a foul?
@foreveroufc: time to get referees explaining their decisions
Exactly! Goal disallowed to stop us going 3-1 then Barnsley scored to finish 2-2
— Sam 🚜💙 (@itfcsam96) August 28, 2022
— Cameron Willett (@CameronWillet16) August 28, 2022
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