No laughing matter for Baird (From Daily Echo)

No laughing matter for Baird

4:44pm Monday 23rd August 2010 in

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AFTER three decades in football, there is not much Eastleigh boss Ian Baird has n’t experienced in the game.

But the former Saints and Leeds United striker was rendered practical ly dumbstruck by Islington referee Ashvin Degnarain during Saturday’s 3- 0 defeat at Blue Square Bet South table- toppers Chelmsford City.

It wasn’t the first-half dismissal of Eastleigh’s Warren Goodhind that got under Baird’s skin. He accepts that the defender’s two cautions, one for unsporting behaviour on 37 minutes and the second for a foul three minutes later, were yellow card offences.

But what he couldn’t accept was hav ing a perfectly good Jamie Slabber goal ruled out incorrectly for offside, seeing an innocuous penalty awarded against his side and having Will Hendry booked for simulation after he had been brought down by ex-Spitfires keeper Jamie Pullen.

“In 30 years involved in football, I’ve never seen such an inept and embar rassing performance by a referee,” said Baird.

“It was that bad that when I asked one of his assistants afterwards if the ref eree had admitted to his mistakes, he started laughing.”

Trailing to a seventh-minute penalty awarded for Goodhind’s foul on Anthony Cook, the Spitfires thought they had levelled through ex-Spurs striker Slabber.

The referee initially gave the goal only to reverse his decision after con sulting with the linesman.

“Jamie was in an offside position when he went through, but the ball ric ocheted off a Chelmsford player,” said Baird.

“The ref’s given it, but then got sur rounded by Chelmsford players and went over to speak to the linesman. The linesman said he didn’t raise his flag because he felt it had come off a Chelmsford player, but the ref still changed his mind.

"He later said he’d disallowed it because the linesman had buzzered him, but I asked the linesman and he said he hadn’t.”

Baird’s mood blackened on 28 min utes when Rainford struck again from the spot after Chris Holland had been penalised for a so-called trip on Ricky Modeste.

“It was the most innocuous challenge you’ve ever seen. Not even their players or the linesman thought it was a penalty,” he fumed.

Four minutes later came Hendry’s booking for diving and, yet again, Baird felt Degnarain had lost the plot.

“Will’s been brought down by Jamie Pullen, so he’s booked Will and said Jamie ‘unintentionally’ fouled him,” said the mystified Eastleigh boss.

“I’ve had plenty of disciplinary problems with referees in my time but, on this occasion, I just sat down and said ‘this is embarrassing.’ “There wasn’t even an assessor there and after the game the referee would n’t let me see him.”

To cap a frustrating after noon for the ten-man Spitfires, Takumi Ake finished them off with a rampaging run and finish down the left soon after half- time.