Sheffield Wednesday beat Hull City on New Year’s Day. But the game wasn’t without its controversies.
Sheffield Wednesday welcomed Yorkshire rivals Hull City to Hillsborough on New Year’s Day, with Danny Rohl‘s side eventually winning the game 3-1.
Goals came in the second half from Marvin Johnson, Djeidi Gassama, and Josh Windass, with Hull having gone down to 10 men after 35 minutes.
Liverpool loan man Tyler Morton was shown a straight red card after what looked like a two-footed challenge on Gassama.
But Hull City appealed the red card and they’ve been successful in their appeal.
Barry Cooper says Hull City handed ‘crumb of comfort’, but rues refereeing decision
Referee Darren Bond came under scrutiny from Hull City fans online after handing Morton a straight red card, and seemingly handing the Owls all three points on the day.
And Hull Live journalist Barry Cooper has since had his say on the matter, posting on X:
The Tigers have now lost three of their last four and currently find themselves in 7th place of the Championship table, after 6th place Sunderland won 2-0 against Preston on the opening day of 2024.
Sheffield Wednesday meanwhile are up into 22nd and now just three points from safety, with Darren Moore‘s Huddersfield Town the team sitting immediately in front of the Owls.
Sheffield Wednesday nor Hull should rely on refereeing decisions
Whether or not the red card was harsh, Sheffield Wednesday won the game.
And there’s no reason to say that they wouldn’t have won it against an 11-man Hull side either; Wednesday were well in the game before the sending off and given their recent record at home, with wins against the likes of Blackburn Rovers and QPR and a draw against Leicester City, the Owls had every chance of winning that game.
What’s more is that refereeing decisions will go against every team over the course of the season. Some teams, admittedly, will probably receive a few more bad decisions than others, but that’s the way of the game and Wednesday between now and May will no doubt be on the receiving end of a questionable decision.
For teams like Hull and Sheffield Wednesday, both with very different aspirations this season, they can’t be relying on refereeing decisions going their way; they need to put enough points on the board so that a poor decision doesn’t dictate their fortunes this season.
The Owls are back at Hillsborough this weekend with a visit from Cardiff City in the FA Cup.