Nottingham Forest have now lodged an official complaint with the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL). This move follows the example set by Everton defender James Tarkowski during Saturday’s match at Hill Dickinson Stadium. Their biggest controversy came in the 11th minute of play. Sadly for Forest, it was a disheartening 3-0 defeat. Club officials are absolutely convinced things would have turned out completely differently. We were adamant that Tarkowski should have seen a straight red for that.
Entering the second half, Everton was up 1-0. Tarkowski then participated in a striking, off the ball incident that, remarkably, evaded the attention of on-field magistrate, Chris Kavanagh. That VAR official, James Bell, would go on to not intervene, a decision that has Forest’s management reeling in vitriol. They contend that Tarkowski committed a foul that deserved the harshest of punishments and potentially changed the course of the match.
Incident Summary
It was an unusual clash on the field that caused Tarkowski to collide with the other player. This led to his teammate, Gallagher, to speak up and provide a warning before it occurred. Gallagher was all business as he intently observed the game. His subsequent remarks on Tarkowski’s challenge, insisting that players need to be punished, should never have been made by a referee.
After that match, Sean Dyche, the Everton manager, said that Tarkowski wouldn’t have done it with malice or intent.
“Tarky is a great person by the way so I did warn him, it’s unlike him so it’s not to do with the individuals involved, it’s for the better good of the game sometimes, where you go ‘hold on, that can’t be right’.” – Sean Dyche
In particular, Dyche pointed out the lack of balance in officiating across the game. As he highlighted, these seemingly minor infractions can have serious consequences for players.
“I’ve mentioned before, I’ve seen people touch strands of hair on their face and they go down, rolling around and they get sent off. People bring hands to people’s faces, but you can’t touch them or you get sent off.” – Sean Dyche
Reactions from Nottingham Forest
Nobody on Forest’s coaching staff was happy with how that was managed. They think that Tarkowski should have been issued a minimum of a yellow card for what he did during the game. The club’s leaders are apoplectic. They view it as inequitable that the most egregious actions receive little to no consequence while lesser actions receive the book thrown at them.
Given the circumstances of this incident, Nottingham Forest’s management believe it is their duty to protest and make clear their outrage to PGMOL. Their intention in drawing attention to this issue, they say, is to play a role in establishing better officiating standards in more matches going forward.
“Not even a yellow card. It’s not a shove if you look at it. Players get yellows and reds now for just touching heads together and it’s a lot more than that.” – Sean Dyche
The PGMOL operates a non-publicity clause with severe penalties and does not discuss its dealings with clubs. Despite this, they have failed to publicly engage with the merits of Forest’s complaint or the egregious incident involving Tarkowski. This lack of transparency has only exacerbated frustrations inside of Nottingham Forest.
PGMOL’s Position
Notwithstanding the furor over this occurrence, Everton was able to find all the drama it needed in defeating Nottingham Forest 3-0 at Goodison Park. For anyone wanting to relive the game’s key moments, full match highlights and reports are on skysports.com.
Despite the controversy surrounding this event, Everton emerged victorious against Nottingham Forest with a convincing 3-0 win. Match highlights and reports are available on skysports.com for those interested in reviewing the game’s key moments.
Leave a Reply