Ipswich Town’s chief executive, Mark Ashton, is set to meet with PGMOL head Howard Webb to seek clarification after his team were denied what he believes was a “stonewall penalty” in their recent clash against Leicester City, as reported by the Mirror.
The incident took place in a tense 1-1 draw at Portman Road, where Ipswich had led for much of the match.
However, a late equaliser from Jordan Ayew saw Leicester snatch a point, overshadowing Ipswich’s hopes of claiming their first victory of the season.
The controversy centres on a collision in the box between Abdul Fatawu and Ipswich forward Conor Chaplin, which referee Tim Robinson did not penalise.
Both Ashton and Ipswich manager Kieran McKenna were vocal in their discontent after the match, criticising the referee’s handling of the game, particularly the decision to not award a penalty and the subsequent red card for Kalvin Phillips, who was dismissed after receiving a second yellow card.
This penalty row is the fourth instance this season where Ipswich have been left aggrieved by VAR decisions, prompting Ashton to voice his frustrations with the technology.
Speaking to BBC Radio Suffolk, he said: “From an entertainment perspective, I believe the game is worse off with VAR from what I have seen.”
“All I ask for with refereeing and VAR is consistency. We have not seen consistency. I don’t personally believe, and my colleagues don’t personally believe, that we have seen consistency over the games. All I look for is consistency. Right now, I am confused.”
Ashton’s dismay was evident as he revealed he’d reached out to Webb during the game itself, sensing the way events were unfolding.
“I actually messaged Howard when we were 1-0 up because I had a sense of the way this was going to go. I’ve been in this game a long time and I could feel it.
“I messaged him and said, ‘Look, can we speak directly after the game?’ We spoke and some of that conversation needs to remain private because I’ll end up being on a charge, I’ll end up being on a stadium ban, I’ll end up being fined.”
The outcome of their discussion, Ashton confirmed, was an agreement to meet at Portman Road to address the concerns.
“We need answers. We need to understand. At the moment, I cannot understand some of the refereeing decisions that were made and I struggle to understand why we weren’t awarded a penalty.”
He also took aim at pundits who backed the decision.
“I have seen former referees giving their opinion that it wasn’t a penalty, but they cannot be serious. Come on – don’t just back your former colleagues – it was a stonewall penalty.”
Ipswich, currently sitting 18th in the Premier League without a win, find themselves in a precarious position, while Leicester’s point lifts them to 15th after ten games.