JR and his beloved legal advice

[One_Matty_Lucas]

Think that this just makes us look a stupid club, just as with the Dunk incident...

DROS Article

[Chris]

Legal advice of what kind?

I really hope nothing comes of this for the sake of football!

[Filo]

Looking at that picture on there, as well as the headbutt, he`s gone in with both feet off the ground, studs showing and by all accounts late!

At least Habib Beye got a foot on the ball in his incident!

[One_Matty_Lucas]

I just think that as with the Beye tackle, which has as much place in football as Dunk's that we would seem very hypocritical to lambast referees all the time and threaten legal action.

[The L J Monk]

How's Matty Fryatt doing nowadays?

[redwine]

I'm sure many of us remember John Doolan and his \"tackle\" on Stephen MacPhail at Oakwell.

A \"X\" rated challenge as ever I saw.

What happens on the pitch should stay there IMO

[NickDRFC]

Exactly, much as it isn't pleasant being on the receiving end he'd do well not to forget that we've dished it out in the past.

[donnyroversfc]

Ffs thats pathetic and makes the club look an embarrasment! Surprised he hasn't tried suing a referee over a wrong decision yet.

[Surrey Rover]

I couldn't believe that referee Fred Graham didn't even have a word with the offending Bristol City player over the challenge on Coppinger. I thought the ref was poor and I'm not surprised he's on his second go as a football league referee having been demoted the first time around.

http://www.football-league.co.uk/interviews/20111215/men-in-black-fred-graham_2293411_2545182

[Berkshire Rover]

As a matter of principle I agree that taking legal advice for matters like this is probably not the wisest. But it exposes the lack of accountability of officials, I know I'm bound to look at things from a Rovers perspective so I'm prepared to accept that my views are not totally objective, but I can't honestly remember the last time we had a ref that consistently gave decisions in our favour.

The referee on Saturday was atrocious for.

Not taking more action agains the guy who assaulted Copps
Not taking advice from his linesman over the Beye incident
Not giving a foul against their defender who cynically barged Hayter ( I think) as he was running onto a ball in the box
Not booking their player who hacked Stock ( again I think)  in the centre of the park.

Games last Saturday are decided by fine margins and if you do get several key decisions all going against you it must have a significant impact on the outcome.

I suspect JR is hugely frustrated at the attitude that officials do seem to display towards us and feels he has no other option, let's cut the guy a bit of slack we all know his hearts in the right place.



Ps before anybody says anything that is my view as an individual  and as a fan who was at Bristol on Saturday, it isn't an official VSC position!

[Sheepskin Stu]

As a matter of principle I agree that taking legal advice for matters like this is probably not the wisest. But it exposes the lack of accountability of officials, I know I'm bound to look at things from a Rovers perspective so I'm prepared to accept that my views are not totally objective, but I can't honestly remember the last time we had a ref that consistently gave decisions in our favour.

The referee on Saturday was atrocious for.

Not taking more action agains the guy who assaulted Copps
Not taking advice from his linesman over the Beye incident
Not giving a foul against their defender who cynically barged Hayter ( I think) as he was running onto a ball in the box
Not booking their player who hacked Stock ( again I think)  in the centre of the park.

Games last Saturday are decided by fine margins and if you do get several key decisions all going against you it must have a significant impact on the outcome.

I suspect JR is hugely frustrated at the attitude that officials do seem to display towards us and feels he has no other option, let's cut the guy a bit of slack we all know his hearts in the right place.



Ps before anybody says anything that is my view as an individual  and as a fan who was at Bristol on Saturday, it isn't an official VSC position!

That's fair comment Steve. However referees are human beings who make mistakes. I'm sure John wouldn't be happy if someone took legal action if his staff made an honest mistake.

Sour grapes and nothing more.

[DonnyNoel]

Not often I like to go against JR but what will this achieve - whether he is right or wrong whats going to happen? We've been here before and nothing has improved, I admire greatly his persistence in making sure we aren't treated as minnows but memories in football can be selective. Whilst no one was hurt, two of the biggest bloopers I've ever seen at football have gone in Rovers favour - the Telford goal that never was and Mark Wilson not being punished for one of the most blatent penalty giveaways ever (and that was against Forest!). Can of worms IMO, who knows what might go our way in future and who might get injured playing against us in future.

[GloucesterRover31]

One of the real issues I have with complaining about refereeing decisions on this occasion is that we lost the game because we were unable to defend anything coming in from the wings, nothing to do with the referee. Would we of got anything out of the game had it of been 10 v 10 probably not. Will Copps been out for the rest of the season cost us a place in the league? Debatable but again probably not. If we could concentrate on the next match and not the last I think it would stand us in better steed

[Thinwhiteduke]

It'll achieve absolutely nothing and just make us look bitter and twisted - to be honest it'll probably do us more harm than good.

Ridiculous idea.

[big fat yorkshire pudding]

Something nobody seems to have mentioned - legal advice for what?

It could be anything from compensation on insurance so taking action against the ref or man who did it?

[Donnylass]

As a matter of principle I agree that taking legal advice for matters like this is probably not the wisest. But it exposes the lack of accountability of officials, I know I'm bound to look at things from a Rovers perspective so I'm prepared to accept that my views are not totally objective, but I can't honestly remember the last time we had a ref that consistently gave decisions in our favour.

The referee on Saturday was atrocious for.

Not taking more action agains the guy who assaulted Copps
Not taking advice from his linesman over the Beye incident
Not giving a foul against their defender who cynically barged Hayter ( I think) as he was running onto a ball in the box
Not booking their player who hacked Stock ( again I think)  in the centre of the park.

Games last Saturday are decided by fine margins and if you do get several key decisions all going against you it must have a significant impact on the outcome.

I suspect JR is hugely frustrated at the attitude that officials do seem to display towards us and feels he has no other option, let's cut the guy a bit of slack we all know his hearts in the right place.



Ps before anybody says anything that is my view as an individual  and as a fan who was at Bristol on Saturday, it isn't an official VSC position!

I completly agree. It's the frustration at this lack of accountability that prompts JR to say the things he says. I know this has been brought up endless times, but with technology today, it's ridiculous that we have to rely on judgement that has 'Human error'involved.
I think that if a complaint is put in re incidents and it is found that the refs judgement was in error, and in the case of Saturday's game we played with 10 men when we should have had 11, then we should be compensated, ie given 1 point if the game on avarage looked equal.
Maybe I'm being naive, but that's just my thought. That way the ref can make 'human errors', clubs don't completly loose out and we don't have to resort to 'legal action'.

[wilts rover]

Something nobody seems to have mentioned - legal advice for what?

It could be anything from compensation on insurance so taking action against the ref or man who did it?

It can only be for the Coppinger incident can't it? If they think was deliberate then maybe it can be judged as 'common assult' and therefore against the law? Haven't there been several previous incidents where individual players have been  sued - but mostly when the player concerned has had to retire? I thought it was deliberate at the time - but then again I thought it was an elbow so what do I know.

[GloucesterRover31]

Manchester City's Mario Balotelli has been charged with violent conduct by the Football Association following an incident against Tottenham on Sunday…. Did anyone hear Daniel Levy seeking leagal advice as to the 1 point they missed out on or the 3 points in the championship race it has cost them? Its excepted that referees make mistakes and the FA will review footage and charge players accordingly. I don’t think making a song and dance will make any difference apart from put the club on the referee black list. The last rant I heard in public like this was rafa benitez in his last act as a Liverpool manager….futile

[The Red Baron]

Looking at that picture on there, as well as the headbutt, he`s gone in with both feet off the ground, studs showing and by all accounts late!

At least Habib Beye got a foot on the ball in his incident!

The photo probably doesn't give the whole picture of the incident, but it looks like a head-to-head challenge rather than a headbutt. The only thing you could say is that the Bristol City player may have gone in with excessive force. The video would show that, of course.

I think the current focus on (dare I say \"obsession with\"?) the two-footed tackle may have caused referees to take their eye off the ball when it comes to aerial challenges. I saw two at least in yesterday afternoon's TV games (by Lescott and Song) where they led with the forearm or elbow and could have caused serious injury. A few years ago both would have been a yellow at least, if not a red.

[The Red Baron]

Something nobody seems to have mentioned - legal advice for what?

It could be anything from compensation on insurance so taking action against the ref or man who did it?

It can only be for the Coppinger incident can't it? If they think was deliberate then maybe it can be judged as 'common assult' and therefore against the law? Haven't there been several previous incidents where individual players have been  sued - but mostly when the player concerned has had to retire? I thought it was deliberate at the time - but then again I thought it was an elbow so what do I know.

Hellishly difficult to win a court case, though. Dean Saunders should know...

In September 1992, (Paul) Elliott sustained a serious knee injury, resulting from a challenge by Liverpool's Dean Saunders. He never played again and on 10 May 1994 – just four days before Chelsea lost to Manchester United in their first FA Cup final since 1970 – Elliott announced his retirement after failing to recover from the injury Player and club had been confident of a return to action in 1993–94 and he had been issued with the number 22 shirt with the introduction of squad numbers in the FA Premier League.
 
Just after his retirement, Elliott filed a lawsuit against Saunders seeking damages for the career-ending injury. However, he lost the case when a civil court found that Saunders was not at fault.

[DaveDRFC]

Looking at that picture on there, as well as the headbutt, he`s gone in with both feet off the ground, studs showing and by all accounts late!

At least Habib Beye got a foot on the ball in his incident!

I wasn't at the game but that photo just looks like 2 players going for a header and there's been a clash of heads. Not entirely sure how you expect someone to jump for a header without taking both feet off the floor??

[Filo]

Looking at that picture on there, as well as the headbutt, he`s gone in with both feet off the ground, studs showing and by all accounts late!

At least Habib Beye got a foot on the ball in his incident!

I wasn't at the game but that photo just looks like 2 players going for a header and there's been a clash of heads. Not entirely sure how you expect someone to jump for a header without taking both feet off the floor??

Is there a tongue in cheek smiley?

[DaveDRFC]

Is there a tongue in cheek smiley?

Fair enough, just checking!

[Mr1Croft]

I seem to recall Stoke having a problem with Referees last season, I don't think they had to threaten legal action. If anything it is going to encourage the referees to not be lenient with us and biased.

I seem to recall Joseph Mills on his first game against Derby at losing a first man challenge from behind at the edge of the box and only got a yellow card. I think we've had as much soft decisions for us than against, but when your in a relegation scrap and losing on a regular basis only the bad decisions stick in your mind and its easier to blame the ref than saying \"we weren't good enough\".

[madmick50]

Moaning about referees and talking about legal action means we haven't just shot ourselves in the foot, we've gone and shot both legs off! Totally embarrassing.

[RoversAlias]

Disgusted when I read about this a few minutes ago. What does he think this will achieve?

I'm finding it harder and harder to get behind what John Ryan says these days, for reasons like this. FFS there's no need, what happens on the pitch stays there and is dealt with in the laws of the game. If the referee didn't see it, then he didn't see it.

[Curious Orange]

How's Matty Fryatt doing nowadays?

His three-month absence was on a par with the frequency of your attendance at Rovers' matches.

[Jenny]

Totally utterly laughable.

Does the man not think before he opens his mouth? We are turning into a laughing stock.

The club should focus on the pathetic defending rather than spouting about legal action.

Embarrassing.

[Wellred]

I seem to have missed something here.
What is quoted on the DRFC website is:
\"John Ryan has taken legal advice.\"
Can someone point me to where John Ryan has said he will be taking legal ACTION?
Has the english language changed and advice and action now mean the same thing?

You lot need to get a grip of yourselves and stop whining about everything JR is QUOTED as saying or doing.

It seems that half the posters on here think JR is God and the other half think he is the devil incarnate.

FFS get a grip.

[RedJ]

I seem to have missed something here.
What is quoted on the DRFC website is:
\"John Ryan has taken legal advice.\"
Can someone point me to where John Ryan has said he will be taking legal ACTION?
Has the english language changed and advice and action now mean the same thing?

You lot need to get a grip of yourselves and stop whining about everything JR is QUOTED as saying or doing.

It seems that half the posters on here think JR is God and the other half think he is the devil incarnate.

FFS get a grip.

who else could bring back something from the dead the way he did?