Mark Halsey, a former top-flight referee, has revealed whether he would have awarded a penalty and handed out a red card to Preston North End’s Jordan Storey following an incident that occurred in their 3-0 win over Huddersfield Town.
Alex Neil’s men ended a three-game winless run on Saturday with a convincing victory over their Championship rivals, but things could have panned out a lot differently had Storey been punished for a challenge he made with the game goalless.
The 23-year-old defender appeared to block Huddersfield’s Lewis O’Brien as the Terriers midfielder was charging down the Preston goalkeeper and had a good chance of reaching the ball first.
In an exclusive interview with This Is Futbol, Halsey was asked whether the challenge should have resulted in a penalty kick and a red card for Storey.
He had this to say on the matter in response. (30:17)
Halsey said: “I am amazed that none of the on-field officials spotted that incident because, for me, that was a clear denial of an obvious goalscoring opportunity. So I was surprised that a penalty wasn’t given and a red card issued, I have to say.”
Our view is that Halsey sums this episode up perfectly. Storey is extremely lucky to stay on the pitch and the on-field referee appears to have made a mistake in not dismissing him under law 12, which states: ‘Where a player commits an offence against an opponent within their own penalty area which denies an opponent an obvious goal-scoring opportunity and the referee awards a penalty kick, the offending player is cautioned if the offence was an attempt to play the ball; in all other circumstances (e.g. holding, pulling, pushing, no possibility to play the ball etc.) the offending player must be sent off.’