Neil Harris, the Gillingham manager, expressed his disappointment regarding a contentious decision made by referee Jacob Miles during the recent match against Mansfield, resulting in Davis Keillor-Dunn’s equalizing goal at Priestfield.
In the first half of the League 2 game, the Gills were in control and had taken the lead through an early goal by Macauley Bonne.
However, a swift free-kick taken by Mansfield after Ethan Coleman was penalized for a foul, a decision Harris did not dispute, led to Mansfield’s goal.
The controversy arose when the referee reached for a yellow card, seemingly indicating a pause in play, but Mansfield capitalized on the quick free-kick and scored.
Harris remained composed on the sidelines, speaking to fourth official Aaron Farmer at halftime and later questioning referee Miles about the incident. After the game, he shared his perspective with the press.
Harris acknowledged that Ethan’s foul was valid, deserving a yellow card, and Mansfield players had the right to take a quick free-kick.
However, he emphasized that the referee’s actions, including reaching for the card and gesturing to book the player, gave the impression to everyone in the stadium that a booking was imminent. This, according to Harris, took the decision out of the game temporarily.
Harris also pointed out that the free-kick was taken several yards ahead of where it was initially awarded, but he did not dispute that fact.
He argued that the referee’s demeanor and body language made his team stop, believing a yellow card was coming.
Harris believed this was a significant moment that influenced the game’s outcome and suggested that the decision was subjective and contentious. He felt that his team was right to feel hard done by at that moment.
Despite his frustration, Harris knew he had to stay composed because the decision had affected his players emotionally. He observed that his players were getting emotional, with Scott Malone receiving a booking and younger players making consecutive errors.
Harris decided to convey a calm message to his senior players, urging them to remain composed and leave him to address the issue with the fourth official at halftime.
He did so and received an explanation of the rule, which he found valuable. Harris remained calm, understanding that he needed to deliver his message at halftime to regain control of the game.
He emphasized that while the letter of the law is important, football also relies on the referee’s control of the narrative and the storyline.
In this instance, he believed the focus would be on the referee’s role, and he suggested that if the referee had pulled the play back when the Mansfield player passed the ball, the incident would not have been a topic of discussion.
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