Bad Referees/Officials

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Tipsy referee sent off in Swedish game

Mon Jan 16, 6:57 AM ET

STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - An assistant referee was sent off from a Swedish third division ice hockey game over the weekend after the players began to suspect he was drunk.

During the contest between Sveg IK and Halsingegardens AIK one of the two assistant referees started behaving increasingly erratically and, smelling alcohol on his breath, the players became suspicious.

"The longer the match went on, the more he started to fall over and hold on to the boards, dropping his whistle and making contradictory signals," Sveg trainer Hakan Nilsson told Reuters on Monday.

"Some of the signs don't even exist in hockey. They looked more like he was doing the doggy paddle."

After the second period, the two teams had had enough and together with the referee took the linesman to the locker room for the final period.

The third period of the game, which Sveg won 6-3, was played with the remaining two referees.

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Conference USA criticizes officials for technical foul on Penders

Jan. 23, 2006

HOUSTON -- Conference USA said Monday that officials "exercised poor judgment" when they upheld a technical foul on Houston coach Tom Penders after he collapsed during a game against UAB over the weekend.

Penders passed out on the sideline late in the first half of Houston's 82-79 loss on Saturday and was carried off the court on a stretcher and given oxygen. He returned to coach the second half.

Penders dropped to his knees, then fell face down as UAB's Wen Mukubu drove to the basket and was fouled by Oliver Lafayette with 52 seconds left in the half. Officials called a technical foul on Penders, apparently thinking he was reacting to the foul call. But the game stopped, and the crowd hushed when Penders didn't get up.

Penders, 60, has cardiomyopathy, a congenital heart condition, and had a defibrillator implanted in his chest in 1997. Houston officials attributed the incident to Penders' heart condition and dehydration.

The officials refused to reverse the technical after Penders received medical attention, and UAB's Carldell "Squeaky" Johnson made both free throws.

"Commissioner (Britton) Banowsky and I have reviewed the tape of the play in question, and it appears that the crew exercised poor judgment in sustaining the technical foul following the medical condition that arose for Coach Penders," C-USA assistant commissioner Chris Woolard said in a statement. "We have been in consultation this morning with Dale Kelley, our coordinator of officials, and appropriate action will be taken."

The conference will not release what sanctions, if any, it decides to impose, a spokesman said.

"I appreciate the conference office acting upon my request to review the matter and their willingness to hold officials accountable for their work," Houston athletic director Dave Maggard said.

Penders did not realize he had been called for a technical until after the game. When he found out, he said the call was "extremely poor judgment on the officials' part."