Toolstation NCEL Premier Division
Rob Hunter accepted his Knaresborough Town were well-beaten in the 5-1 defeat at Penistone Church but he was fuming with the referee over the award of the first half phantom penalty.
Threadbare and patched up Knaresborough were already up against it and 2-0 down but still in the game when Penistone were gifted a spot kick which was converted and finished the visitors off.
The decision was a blatant error as Nathan Keightley slipped on the muddy surface.
“Incredible,” Hunter told Non League Yorkshire.
“He gave the penalty against Sam Cook who is three yards away from Nathan Keightley.
“Keightley had the ball on the left-side of the penalty area and his first touch has brought the ball backwards and he slipped in the mud and kept going.
“The referee unexplainably has said ‘that’s a free kick’ and then looked at it and said ‘actually it is a penalty’.
“Nobody in the ground thought it was a penalty.
“No-one appealed and it is the most ridiculous penalty decision I’ve ever seen in football.
“Straight away he apologised to the players for giving it – well change your mind then.
“He said ‘I can’t my mind now I’ve given it’.
“You can change your mind and I think it is a disgrace.
“I haven’t spoken to him because I don’t want to talk to him because I thought he was awful.”
Knaresborough were down to the barebones at Penistone and they were well-beaten.
But Hunter was immensely proud of his players for not giving up in adversity.
“We have seven injuries from Tuesday night’s game (at Emley) that have stretched us to say the least,” he said.
“We have had to play Craig Ramplin at centre-half and he’s a number ten. He had a very good game.
“We had to give 18-year-old Bailey Tomlinson his debut and play a 17-year-old at wing-back.
“That’s where we are at the moment.
“It is really tough to come here (Penistone).
“After ten minutes they scored from a cross from a free kick out-wide.
“The wind has took it right into the top corner and you’re like ‘dear me, that’s great start’.
“Then the referee has given a penalty that wasn’t a penalty.
“So we were absolutely up against it.
“But at end of the day, we have lads playing out of position and we never stopped.
“We missed a penalty when Ben (Parkes) blazed it over the bar, Sean (Hunter) beat his man and hit the post, we had another opportunity where Colin (Heath) should have got a penalty.
“We could have had three or four ourselves and I just said to the lads that football is a tough old game when you come to somewhere like Penistone, a big, strong, physical side and these lads have stood up.
“On paper it looks like we have been battered 5-1 and we have probably have but I’m really proud of them today.
“We knew before we got here that it was going to be desperate.
“We had no defenders.
“Special mention to Sam Cook because he played 65 minutes with an injury and because of the state we were in he offered his services and said ‘I’ll do as much as I can’.
“I can’t have asked for any more from these guys.”