Premier League refereeing under microscope AGAIN as Neil Swarbrick admits gaffe

REFEREE Neil Swarbrick confessed that he sent off the wrong man on another disastrous day for Premier League officials.

Neil SwarbrickGETTY

Neil Swarbrick apologised for his mistake

He is just the latest in a lengthening list of top-flight refs who have blundered in big games, Swarbrick dismissing West Brom’s Gareth McAuley instead of Craig Dawson after just 65 seconds.

After the game, Swarbrick admitted he had made a mistake in an official statement which read: “The referee has confirmed the offence was caused by a different player, which should be addressed now as a case of mistaken identity. The referee has apologised for his error.”

It’s further embarrassment for the Premier League refereeing fraternity who have been dogged by high-profile mess-ups including Sunderland’s Wes Brown being sent off instead of John O’Shea and Arsenal’s Kieran Gibbs being red carded instead of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

West Brom boss Tony Pulis called for managers to have a referral system to avoid more mistakes.

He said: “I’d like to see managers have two 30-second calls to contest decisions which look wrong. It could be backed up by video link-up. That should stop major decisions being wrong.”

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