Ashley Young relieved after penalty u-turn secures Aston Villa's victory

Dec 31 2008 by Bill Howell, Birmingham Mail

ASHLEY Young spoke of his relief after Steve Bennett’s decision to change his mind over Hull’s last-gasp penalty claim.

Young’s finger-tips were inches away from the ball and he admitted: “It was a nervy moment for me.

“Brad Friedel had given a shout that it was going over the crossbar. It was just a reaction to put my hand up as it was going over.

“I knew I hadn’t touched it. The ball hit the crossbar.

“The manager told me that I would have been left behind had the penalty been given – but we got the three points.

“It was a tough fought win but we got there in the end.”

Young praised new laws which allow the captain to speak to officials.

“It worked out really well for us,” he said. “Gareth had a word but you don’t often get a referee to change their mind over a penalty.

“The referee deserves a lot of credit – and that goes for the linesman as well.”

Barry admitted that he had approached linesman Andy Halliday because he could see doubt in his mind.

“I knew straightaway that he thought it wasn’t a penalty so I went over