Stoke City: Penalty decision wrong, claims Griffin

by Michael Baggaley

STOKE captain Andy Griffin is adamant referee Rob Styles was wrong to give the penalty against him which handed Derby last night's dramatic victory.

Styles pointed to the spot after deciding Griffin handled Przemyslaw Kazmierczak's cross in the fourth minute of injury-time.

Nathan Ellington duly converted from the spot, and Stoke's hopes of their first League Cup semi-final since 1972 were over.

The Stoke skipper admits the ball hit his upper arm, but says his arm was by his side and he wasn't trying to block the ball.

He said: "If it says in the rulebook that handball has to be deliberate, then no, it was not a penalty.

"I kind of turned sideways and it hit the back of my arm. I didn't try to stop it going by me or anything like that. I know for a fact it wasn't deliberate. The referee got it wrong as far as I am concerned.

"It is common sense. When someone boots the ball at your arm, and it is accidental, then what are you supposed to do?

"I'm disappointed and a little bit angry, but there's not a lot I can do now."

Both sides had chances to win the game before Ellington's clincher as a scrappy first half gave way to a more open game after the break.

Griffin says Stoke had the better chances to win a hard-fought encounter, which was more notable for its commitment than quality.

He said: "It was a Championship game, a rough and tough, direct game rather than a fancy one.

"We created some decent chances and, on another night, we could have won, but I suppose they might have said the same.

"We have played better this season, but we have also played worse.

"It was an open second half, but apart from them hitting the bar and a scuffle that went past the post, I thought we created the better chances."

Despite the dejection of missing out on a semi-final spot, Griffin doesn't believe the players will suffer a hangover from the defeat when they return to the Premier League with Saturday's game at Newcastle.

He said: "Time will tell, but we can't feel sorry for ourselves. The next game is a tough one and it is three points up for grabs.

"It will be a good time to dust ourselves down. If we win on Saturday, it will be a kind of a remedy for tonight.

"We are resilient as a team and we have a lot of spirit and character in the camp because the manager has brought in players who have that.

"That's the reason we have had a good season so far, but we know we aren't halfway there yet, so there's a long way to go."