In Behind the Whistle, former Premier League referee Chris Foy goes through a selection of key match decisions from the latest action in the Sky Bet Championship, League One and League Two.
Behind the Whistle aims to give supporters of EFL clubs an insight into the decision-making considerations and also clarification of certain calls to provide an understanding of how the laws of the game are interpreted.
As part of a regular feature on Sky Sports following the conclusion of a matchday, Foy will be here to run you through some refereeing matters in the EFL…
Sky Bet Championship
Millwall 2-3 Watford
Incident: Possible penalty – foul (Millwall)
Decision: No penalty (Millwall)
Foy says: “The decision not to award Millwall a penalty here appears to be a correct one, based on the well-established high threshold for penalising foul contact.
“As Millwall’s no. 19 takes his final touch before going down, the Watford defender pulls his foot away. It is difficult to be certain if any contact is made, but if there is it is almost certainly minimal. As such, the decision not to penalise is a credible one in-line with the high threshold.”
Sheffield Wednesday 4-0 Plymouth
Incident: Possible penalty – handball (Sheffield Wednesday)
Decision: No penalty (Sheffield Wednesday)
Foy says: “This clip is a good one from an educational point of view as it shows that, although the ball does hit the arm of the Plymouth Argyle no. 27, not every contact between the ball and the hand/arm is a penalty.
“The referee correctly judges that the Plymouth player has his hand in a justifiable position, given his action.
“As the ball is played by the attacker and makes contact with the arm of the defender, the referee’s positioning allows him to see that the Plymouth player is not trying to make himself bigger by moving his arm away from his body and the claim is rightly waved away.”
Sky Bet League One
Burton Albion 2-3 Lincoln City
Incident: Possible penalty – foul (Lincoln City)
Decision: No penalty (Lincoln City)
Foy says: “As the ball is floated towards the far side, you can see that Lincoln City’s no. 17 is clearly trying to move away from a Burton Albion defender. The defender then holds the attacker who subsequently falls to ground.
“The action is a sustained and impactful non-footballing action and therefore should have been given as a penalty kick.
“The Burton Albion player has both of his hands on the Lincoln no.17, which clearly impacts the ability of the attacker to progress towards the ball, and he does not make an attempt to win the ball.”
Sky Bet League Two
Harrogate 0-2 Bromley
Incident: Possible offside goal (Bromley)
Decision: Goal awarded (Bromley)
Foy says: “This clip highlights a good non-offside decision made by the assistant referee.
“The shot comes in and is diverted into the net by Bromley’s no. 9. Although it is clear that he is the one who had the final touch, the assistant needs to identify whether or not he was onside at the point the initial shot was crossed to him.
“When paused at the point of the cross from Bromley’s #30, it can be seen that the no. 9 is being played onside by Harrogate’s no. 14 and therefore awarding the goal is the correct decision.”