The wrong call was made on the replay. But then Cairns was generous enough to give the ball straight back to Perth, so no harm done!
???
The argument is that Cotton was driving to the basket and could have scored.
Next time, don't get down by 12 with 2.30 to go because you won't win many games from there.
???
Plenty of games have seen even bigger scoring runs.
That said, I'm not particularly interested in bitching about one bad call. Shit happens.
But what this highlights is poor quality and the lack of clarity around the review system.
First of all, it always seems that the refs have to dragged kicking and screaming to the review, never a good sign. Then they are reviewing it at the side of the court, on some pissy little monitor, and they seem to put themselves under enormous time-pressure. They are then too quick to jump to the "inconclusive - original call stands" answer. For mine, that is an incorrect basis on which to rule. If you have gone to the trouble of reviewing it, you should make your decision based on the best available evidence.
I assume what has happened in this case is something like "we're 90% certain it came off weeks foot, but not 100%, so the original call stands."
They need to move to a "4th Ref", sitting in a booth with a video tech, multiple camera feeds and large screens. And they need to nail down the rules for when a review will be called for, and how it will be interpreted.
And just to clarify, the article's title is drivel. If the Steak ends, the Cats have nobody to blame but themselves. This was one dodgy call, in a league that sees dozens of such calls every round.
