David Cuffley City boss Bryan Gunn reckons referee Andy D'Urso "knew he had made a mistake" after failing to award his side a second-half penalty in the home defeat by Bristol City.
David Cuffley
City boss Bryan Gunn reckons referee Andy D'Urso "knew he had made a mistake" after failing to award his side a second-half penalty in the home defeat by Bristol City.
Billericay official D'Urso, who took charge of last season's controversial meeting of the two sides at Ashton Gate, gave the Robins a first-half spot-kick and sent off the Canaries' Gary Doherty for the foul on Dele Adebola.
But what appeared a clear shove by Bradley Orr on Norwich's Adam Drury in the penalty area in the second half went unpunished with the hosts trailing 2-1.
Gunn said he had queried the decision with D'Urso after the match - after being made to wait the obligatory 30 minutes.
He said: "I went in to see Andy and I think he knows he made a mistake. You can look in people's eyes and you can know that. He didn't say anything, I didn't get anything from him at all.
"The assessor was in there as well and they sort of shut up shop.
"We've seen the pictures and on the screen that I saw there were only three people in the picture - one was their right-back, one was our left-back and the other was the referee, so how that decision came about beggars belief.
"Adam is a professional player. He's strong and he's committed. He's running at not quite full tilt but very quick and he gets barged off the ball. I found it strange you don't get a decision like that when it's a nailed-on penalty - 25,000 people agreed with me anyway."
Gunn hopes the official will study the incident, possibly with the help of a personal gift from years ago.
He said: "I thought Andy D'Urso was a mate of mine because he ran the line in my testimonial match and I gave him a CD player or a DVD player.
"Andy has a DVD of the game - I hope it's still working."
Gunn said his son was first to alert him to the fact that D'Urso was given the fixture.
He said: "I didn't realise, but my 13-year-old boy Angus sent me a text and said 'D'Urso is the ref' and I didn't really realise what he meant - but obviously he hasn't got a high opinion of him either.
"I'm really disappointed in the way we didn't get anything from the game. I felt that the lads went out there in the second half after the sending-off and did everything we'd asked them to do and just needed that extra little bit of support from people in charge of the game - and we didn't get it.
"I don't know if referees phone you up and say sorry. I don't know what they do these days.
"It is frustrating and I was asking the fourth official on occasions and he was even looking surprised at some of the decisions. I don't know what the assessor will say to Andy."
Gunn was considering whether to appeal against Doherty's red card with the centre-half facing a two-match ban, having committed the foul in trying to compensate for goalkeeper David Marshall's poor clearance.
Said Gunn: "I'm disappointed for David Marshall because I know what it's like being a goalkeeper in that situation and when you look at the video again and you see Gary Doherty getting back in, he gets a toe on the ball, but obviously there's contact with the man as well.
"I've only seen it once or twice so maybe I'll study that again. He's got a straight red card and that means we'll lose an influential player for one or two games."
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