Burton vs West Ham ref watch: Lewis Smith gets Freddie Potts red right with mixed penalty calls
Referee Lewis Smith was involved in two big first-half penalty calls and an extra-time red card during West Ham’s 1-0 FA Cup win over Burton on Saturday.
West Ham paused their Premier League campaign on Saturday, as Nuno Espirito Santo‘s side travelled to Staffordshire for an FA Cup fourth round tie with Burton.
Nuno made 10 changes to the side that drew 1-1 with Man United last time out, with only Konstantinos Mavropanos retaining his place in the starting lineup at the Pirelli Stadium.
It was a lacklustre performance from the Hammers though, with the League One relegation strugglers taking them to extra-time.
However, a good strike from Crysencio Summerville four minutes into extra-time finally broke the deadlock, and ensures West Ham a place in the hat for the fifth round.
- Read more: Henry Winter details new West Ham fan protests, plus update on what Karren Brady has planned
Lewis Smith changed his mind on Freddie Potts red card
There were numerous big calls that Smith had to make over the course of the 120 minutes on Saturday, but perhaps the biggest involved Freddie Potts.
In the 101st minute of the game, Potts flung himself into a challenge on Burton attacker Julian Larsson, getting none of the ball in the process, to which Smith decided to brandish a red card.
Not, however, before he’d initially reached for a yellow card, but after further thought and deliberation, Smith decided to change his mind and put the yellow back in his pocket, then showing a red instead.
Replays did show that Potts briefly had two feet off the ground when attempting to make the tackle, and so whilst some West Ham fans may feel frustrated that a yellow was originally going to be shown, Smith did come to the right decision in the end.
- Read more: Here’s how David Sullivan and Karren Brady could react to West Ham fan protests at Burton
Smith wasn’t interested in Burton’s Ollie Scarles penalty shout
Burton’s first of two big penalty appeals came just six minutes into the game, and it involved Ollie Scarles.
The Brewers were able to get down the West Ham left where Scarles was deployed, and the Hammers defender attempted to nod the ball back to Alphonse Areola.
However, the 20-year-old didn’t put enough behind his header, and the ball bounced into the box and was up for grabs.
Both Scarles and Kyran Lofthouse went for the loose ball, and the replays showed that it was the West Ham man who just got to the ball first, clearing it away from danger whilst Lofthouse went down looking for a penalty.
Smith instantly waved away Burton protests, and he was absolutely right to do so, getting this tight call spot on.
Smith waved away clear Burton penalty involving Mavropanos
However, Smith certainly didn’t get his second penalty call of the first-half right, much to Burton’s frustration.
A cross came in from the West Ham left that saw Albion striker Jake Beesley get in front of Mavropanos, as he attempted to bring the ball down inside the box via his chest.
However, he wasn’t afforded the opportunity to do so by the Hammers defender, who clumsily bundled into the back of Beesley and sent the Burton forward to the deck.
- Mavropanos has committed nine fouls in the Premier League this season
- He’s been shown two yellow cards in 19 league games this term
Beesley only had eyes for the ball too, and replays showed Mavropanos used a considerable amount of force to knock the Albion man over, but Smith, again, wasn’t interested.
It was the sort of foul that if it was to happen on the halfway line, or an attacker did the same on a goalkeeper from a corner, the referee wouldn’t hesitate to award a foul for.
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