Jerome unhappy at Knight handball let-off

Nov 12 2007 By Colin Tattum, Birmingham Mail

CAMERON Jerome insisted Blues should have been awarded a penalty during the opening attack of the game.

Blues came flying out of the traps and unsettled Villa's defence. Jerome said he tried to elude Zat Knight but was impeded illegally.

And referee Steve Bennett "bottled" it by ruling that Martin Laursen did not touch Daniel de Ridder in a controversial 32nd-minute tackle, said the striker.

"The ball bounced up and I was trying to flick it past Zat as I would have been in on goal," Jerome recounted. "As I did that, he moved his arm and tapped it round.

"I was so close, I was screaming at the ref, but he gave a corner. It was a blatant handball.

"The linesman was on the opposite side of the pitch so it was difficult for him to see it. But the ref was poor all game.

"With the other one, I asked him to at least have a look at it at half-time. He definitely caught him. The way Daniel went down kind of looked like he was simulating, but he made contact, he was fouled.

"It was a definite penalty for me but the referee bottled that decision.

"He didn't keep the game flowing at all. He kept on stopping and starting it, so we couldn't play at the tempo we wanted to."