AIFF calls back referee after NFL fiasco The Hindu Wednesday, February 1, 2006: 0300 Hrs
New Delhi, Feb.1 (PTI): The All India Football Federation on Tuesday called back the referee who stood in the controversial National Football League match between Fransa Pax and Mahindra United in Goa on Monday night. Bikramjit, the Delhi referee who awarded two dubious penalties to the Federation Cup champions, resulting in a 2-1 win for them, has been summoned back even though he was scheduled to stay in Goa for another 10 days and officiate in other matches. "The AIFF has taken the first step by calling back the referee and we are hoping for a prompt decision to resolve this controversy," Goa Football Association (GFA) Secretary Savio Messias, told PTI. Fransa Pax has lodged an official complaint about the standard of refereeing in the match and threatened to pull out of the NFL unless the game was replayed or points shared. "There is no question of playing our next NFL match against Air India on February 3 unless our rightful demand is met," Club President Micky Pacheco, said. Alleging bias on the part of the referee, he said, "The two penalties awarded against us were wrong decisions. Also, one of our goals was wrongly ruled as off-side," adding "we were at the wrong end of some poor refereeing in the Federation Cup also." Messias agreed, saying "the first penalty was a wrong decision and the second was even worse."
