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EVERY PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALLER KNOWS THAT HE WILL BE BROUGHT TO BOOK IF THE TELEVISION CAMERAS CATCH HIM DOING SOMETHING THAT THE REFEREE HAS MISSED. WHY CAN’T THE SAME VIDEO EVIDENCE BE USED TO ASSESS A REFEREE’S PERFORMANCE? IF HE HAS MADE CRUCIAL DECISIONS WHICH ARE INCORRECT, HE SHOULD BE JUST AS LIABLE TO A FINE OR SUSPENSION AS ANY OTHER PERSON ON THE PITCH.

Perhaps the biggest refereeing misdemeanour is to see something that simply hasn’t happened. In the third round of the FA Cup, Crystal Palace’s Danny Butterfield was sent off by referee Andy D’Urso for a flying tackle that felled Bobby Zamora of Tottenham. Butterfield, with his mop of black hair, protested his innocence and quite rightly, as it was shaven headed substitute Jamie Smith who had clattered into the forward. Neither the referee nor any of his three assistants seemed capable of telling the players apart. Having seen the TV evidence, D’Urso has subsequently rescinded the red card for Butterfield and passed it on to Smith.

Jermain Defoe’s sending off after just seven minutes at the Bescot stadium in December had even the Walsall players looking dazed and confused. Referee Scott Mathieson saw a kick of frustration as being an attempt to lash out at an opponent and flashed his red card immediately. The telling factor was that not one Waslall player reacted to Defoe’s actions, least of all the man he was supposed to be assaulting. Only after making the decision did Mathiseon consult with one of his assistants, but stuck to his guns. That one decision affected six of West Ham’s 46 League games, leaving the 10-men at Walsall to battle on for 83 minutes, and then depriving the team of Defoe’s services for another five matches due to his suspension.

Paul Durkin was reluctant to give a free kick at Sheffield United a fortnight ago, decreeing that, with the Hammers leading 3-1, Paul Peschisolido’s bicycle kick into Anton Ferdinand’s head was not dangerous play. While Ferdinand lay injured in the West Ham penalty area, Paul Shaw scored a revitalising goal for Sheffield United, who eventually pegged West Ham back to 3-3 at the final whistle.

Who can forget Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink’s free kick in the FA Cup fourth round replay at Upton Park two seasons ago? As keeper David James was organising his wall, referee Graham Poll stood inches from the ball, before backing off quickly to allow Hasselbaink to score past the Hammers’ bemused rearguard. It was as if Poll had been on the training ground all week to rehearse the move.

I failed to understand at the time how Chelsea had not gained an advantage from the referee’s actions that day. Surely the official should be delivering clear, concise instructions to both teams, not playing a part in a move deliberately engineered to catch one of the teams out.

Cue Thierry Henry at Villa Park a couple of weeks ago. As Aston Villa were busy forming their defensive wall, referee Mark Halsey stood over the ball. Within the blink of an eye, Halsey moved out of the way and Henry clipped the ball into an unguarded goal to give Arsenal the lead.

Villa manager David O’Leary explained: “We did what the ref said and were waiting for a whistle after that. My players said he told them to move back and they waited for the whistle.”

As for the issue of whether a player has dived in the penalty area, it appears that if you go down and it’s not a penalty, you will get a yellow card. Anybody watching the African Cup of Nations will have seen yellow fever hit the tournament as the referees, who had been specifically told to watch out for the offence, are carding any forward who hits the turf.

You cannot get statistics to show whether diving is a real problem or not here in England as neither the English Football Association nor the referees’ association keep such records. Some referees give the caution for 'ungentlemanly conduct’; others report it as 'dissent'. It’s perhaps about time that referees were made more accountable for their actions.