Ipswich Town chairman Mark Ashton has slammed the 'injustice' of his team not being awarded a penalty in Saturday's 1-1 home draw with Leicester City and says he will be demanding answers from Howard Webb when they meet this week.
The Blues were leading 1-0 when Conor Chaplin was barged over by Abdul Fatawu in the box in the 77th minute. No penalty was awarded by referee Tim Robinson who, seconds later, dismissed Town midfielder Kalvin Phillips for a second booking.
To everyone's surprise, Robinson wasn't sent to review the penalty incident on the pitchside monitor, VAR officials indicating that he should stick with the original decision. Ten-man Ipswich went on to concede a stoppage-time equaliser as their wait for a first Premier League win in 22 years continues.
The above follows on from VAR interventions having previously gone against Ipswich in games against Man City, Everton and Brentford this season.
"I thought Saturday was a real injustice," said Ashton, speaking in an exclusive interview with Brenner Woolley on BBC Suffolk.
"Those who know me know I care passionately about this football club and I will give my last breath defending this football club. I made that very, very clear to Howard Webb (former referee who is now technical director of the Professional Game Match Officials Board)."
The Blues chief continued: "I thought long and hard today about what I should and shouldn't say, knowing I was coming on to your show tonight. This chat has been planned for a long time, so it's not a knee jerk reaction to come on and speak.
"I live in a world where if I say too much I'll be put on a charge and what I'm going to say to you now is probably beyond that line, but I've tried to be honest and open with this fanbase since the day I joined. So if it's okay with you I'll give you the events as they unfolded on Saturday.
"I actually messaged Howard when we were 1-0 up because I had a sense of the way this was going to go. I've been in this game a long time and I could feel it. It felt there was an injustice coming and I didn't like that. So I messaged him and said 'can we speak directly after the game?' We spoke directly after the game and some of that conversation needs to remain private because I'll end up being on a charge, I'll end up being on a stadium ban, I'll end up being fined. None of that worries me, but the context of what I said to him was this...
"When we were promoted in the summer the Premier League presented to me why we should support retaining VAR. Wolverhampton Wanderers had made a petition for it to be removed. We listened to Wolves, we listened to other clubs and we listened primarily to the Premier League. On the basis of what I was told we supported the Premier League's decision. A key part of that was how high the bar was going to be set for decisions to be overturned and overruled, and at what point VAR was going to get involved in the game.
"If I was asked to make that vote again tomorrow, I can't look you in the eye and say I'd vote the same way because I am still angry and I am still frustrated. As someone who has spent a long time in the Championship, and from what I've now seen first hand (in the Premier League), from an entertainment perspective I believe the game is worse off with VAR.
"All I ask for with refereeing and VAR is consistency and we have not seen consistency. I do not personally believe, and my colleagues do not believe, that we have seen consistency over the games. Go back to Man City - penalty at one end, not at the other end. I could go on and on about specific incidences.
"Right now I'm confused. I think as a coaching staff we're confused. The culmination of that 'interesting', shall we say, conversation with Howard on Saturday night is that we will meet, this week, at Portman Road to discuss it. Because we need answers. We need to understand. I struggle to understand why we weren't awarded a penalty.
"I've seen on international broadcasters today former referees giving their opinion that it's not a penalty. You cannot be serious! Come on! Don't just back your former colleagues. It's a stonewall penalty. So why isn't it checked by VAR? I don't know. I need to have answers for my manager, for my key stakeholders and, more importantly, I need to have answers for the fanbase.
"And as I said, I will give my last breath fighting for this football club. I didn't enjoy Saturday. I felt it was an injustice to everyone in this town and this county. And I want some answers."
Asked if he felt there was a bias against the so-called smaller clubs in the Premier Leagues when it came to officiating, Ashton replied: "I would hope not. I'd like to see the statistics on that, but it feels that there is a sway towards those larger clubs. I really hope not. I would hope that over the season that evens out.
"When I sat on the board of the Football League I was involved in numerous committees that involved referees and there are some really good referees. But we've got to get consistency. At the moment I don't see that consistency. Some things are checked, some things are not checked. Some things are overruled, some things aren't overruled. I'm sitting in the hotseat and even I don't understand it."
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