Parkinson Plans to Address Refereeing Concerns
Issa Kabore (left) joined Wrexham on a season-long loan deal from Manchester City
Phil Parkinson has announced his intention to send a detailed dossier of incidents to Kevin Friend, the head of the Championship's match officials, following his dissatisfaction with a penalty awarded against Wrexham during their match at West Bromwich Albion.
The penalty was awarded late in the first half at The Hawthorns when Issa Kabore was judged to have fouled West Brom captain Jayson Molumby. Parkinson described the decision as "very, very harsh" and expressed his plan to seek advice from Friend.
"If you give a penalty for that, you're giving three or four penalties every game," said Parkinson.
"Of course, there's contact, but it's only what you see in the penalty box all the time. A very, very harsh decision."
Josh Maja successfully converted the penalty, extending West Brom's lead to 2-0 after George Dobson had earlier scored an own goal by deflecting Isaac Price's free-kick.
Concerns Over Refereeing and Player Treatment
In addition to his concerns about the penalty, Parkinson also highlighted the treatment of Wrexham striker Sam Smith during matches.
"The second goal is a huge lift for them. You need help from referees and when you get a referee who's refereed at the top level, you expect better.
"I have briefly (spoken to the referee after the game) and the other thing I'm getting very frustrated with is the treatment Sam Smith's been getting.
"Watford away, the amount times he got hauled to the floor, blocked and body-checked. I sent all the incidents to the head of the referees and he agreed with me on nearly every one.
"We then go to Sheffield United and [Japhet] Tanganga pulls him down which is a straight red card and the free-kick gets given against Smudge (Smith).
"Today, there's a slide wall pass which is putting him clean through and [Nat] Phillips just tugs him. It's only slight contact, but it's a red card and I feel Smudge needs more protection.
"I'm going to send all those instances together and ask the referees over the next two days to give me some answers because he's had some bad decisions against him, Smudge."
West Brom Manager Supports Penalty Decision
West Brom's interim manager, James Morrison, defended the penalty decision, referencing prior communications with match officials.
"The referees at the start of the season said they were going to punish that. I'm yet to see it, so I'll take it all day," Morrison said.
"I did feel that he (Kabore) was pulling Jayson, so correct decision."
Parkinson responded by emphasizing his ongoing communication with Kevin Friend.
"I'm always in communication with Kevin Friend, the head of the referees, because he's a great guy and he listens.
"But when the ref reviews those instances tonight, he'll know I'm right and he's wrong."
Wrexham Earn a Draw After Comeback
Despite trailing 2-0 at halftime, Wrexham managed to secure a point at The Hawthorns. Josh Windass scored his 12th goal of the season to reduce the deficit, followed by a goal from George Dobson that may be credited to Lewis O'Brien after Dobson confirmed he did not touch the ball on O'Brien's shot.
This draw elevated Wrexham back into the Championship's top six ahead of their upcoming match against play-off rivals Southampton at Stok Cae Ras, scheduled for Tuesday at 20:00 BST.
"Fantastic response after the break," Parkinson remarked. "We were a bit passive in the first half if we're honest.
"We come in at 2-0 down and we ask the lads for character first of all, an improvement in our quality of our play and take our whole game up five to 10 yards up the pitch, and we did that brilliantly in the second half."
