Liam Manning has confirmed that Bristol City have received a report admitting they should have been awarded a free-kick for a foul in the build-up to Sheffield Wednesday’s second goal at Hillsborough.
The Robins drew 2-2 with Danny Rohl’s Owls in South Yorkshire last Wednesday, twice coming from behind courtesy of goals from Nahki Wells and Ross McCrorie to salvage a point after a frustrating first-half display.
Wednesday took the lead early in the first half through Djeidi Gassama and Di’Shon Bernard restored their advantage just minutes after Wells equalised for City at the start of the second period. While the goal was awarded, Manning, the supporters in the Hillsborough away end and many of those watching at home felt it should have been disallowed as Scott Twine appeared to be fouled in the build-up.
Having shared that he felt referee James Linington had a “tough” evening in his post-match press conference in Sheffield, Manning confirmed after the Reds’ 2-1 win over Blackburn Rovers that the officials had admitted their mistakes.
“He [Twine] had a frustrating evening the other night, to which the officials came back and kind of put their hands up,” explained the City head coach. “They got quite a few wrong the other night, including the foul for the goal.
“We got a report back saying there were a couple of fouls that weren’t given including the goal at Sheffield Wednesday.”
Twine has had a knack for winning fouls since he made the move to Ashton Gate, initially on loan, just over 12 months ago. Against Blackburn on Saturday afternoon, he won five free-kicks as he consistently manoeuvred his body cleverly to not only draw contact from his opponent but also leave the referee with no choice but to award the foul.
Some referees have instead opted to take a firmer stance when it comes to officiating the attacking midfielder however, with some supporters and pundits alike suggesting the former Burnley man goes to ground too easily when tackled.
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Although Manning was keen not to say anything that could land him in trouble and potentially risk a fine or suspension, he did insist that he didn’t want to see Twine victimised in the future and also credited Matt Donohue for his performance in the middle against John Eustace’s side.
“You only have to look at here when we played Wolves, here, it’s a different game,” explained the City head coach. “They reffed it completely differently and ultimately the referees have to go into every game neutral. I have to be careful what I say I think.
“What can’t happen is that he’s victimised for how he plays, which is really intelligent. He uses his body, steps across people, takes contact and goes over. I thought the referee had a good day today and did a good job.”
Although the report does very little to help the Robins now, almost a week on from the draw at Hillsborough, Manning and the Bristol City supporters travelling to the Kassam Stadium for Saturday’s clash with Oxford United will be hoping the officials show a bit more consistency.