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It wasn't a penalty. Simple as that.

The referee, Rob Stiles, made a mistake. 43,000 Liverpool fans at Anfield made him aware of what they thought at the time, and at the end of the game. Players and Rafa Benitez made their feelings plain at the time and post match. Radio phone-ins (a popular way of getting something off your chest in the UK) were united in their criticism.

However many times he looks at the replay, Rob Stiles will know that he made a mistake. Only Jose Mourinho seemed to agree with Stiles' decision.

Pointedly even Frank Lampard said he "couldn't comment" as he "honestly didn't see it". Yeah !!! Point made ? Stiles made a mistake.

But, the reaction! The outpouring of vitriol, the clamour for video replays, the labelling of the man as a "cheat" as many on the phone-ins did, and the description of his performance as a "disgrace" and that he "doesn't know what he's doing" (comments made by an eminent Football commentator here in the UK) are so far removed from a neutral and realistic assessment of his performance as to be almost worthwhile Mr. Stiles taking legal action.

Criticism is one thing. What has been heaped on Mr Stiles head is quite another.

True, Liverpool may well suffer at the end of the season. But it wasn't Rob Stiles who volleyed wide from a good position as John Arne Riise did. It wasn't the ref who hit wide when well placed as Xabi Alonso did. It wasn't Rob Stiles who hit a shot from a good position in the first half that went out for a throw-in. Steven Gerrard - one of the best in the world did that.

Mistakes happen. If any one of the three mentioned above had hit the net, Liverpool would have won the game. They didn't; Stiles made his mistake and the match ended 1-1. It's football.

For those who advocate video replays, when would you do it in this circumstance? Would it be conclusive? There is some contact by Steve Finnan on Flourent Malouda so you could always look at the rulebook to justify "penalty". It would still be wrong. It would still be a talking point for the rest of the week/month/season/decade.

Talking points - debate. That is one of the joys of our magnificent game. It's about opinions and talking points.

Think of the gems from this weekend. Sir Alex Ferguson's televised reaction when he thought Carlos Tevez had equalised in the last minute. Unless you're a United fan, don't tell me you didn't giggle. What about the quality of Fernando Torres strike on home debut, or the Eriksson story, or Micah Richards' performance, or Jens Lehmann's blunder. That last example hardly got a look-in this week as the fans turned on the referee at Anfield.

Let me compare them. Mr Lehmann is paid thousands and thousands of dollars per week and is one of the best goalkeepers in the world. His was a dreadful mistake, yet the vitriol he earned from the UK and global press was a small percentage compared to that heaped on Mr. Stiles. It is out of all proportion.

The abuse of officials is commonplace in all sports. Throughout the game at Anfield, Mr Stiles was frequently harangued after decisions by players of both teams. Chelsea were the worse of the two, though Liverpool also pressurised the officials with glares, comments and intimidation. It's not on. Erode officialdom, and anarchy isn't far away !

In cricket, what has emerged is that the word of the player is no longer respected. In the Friends Provident Final at Lord's on Saturday, There was a run-out incident when Ottis Gibson deflected a ball driven back at him onto the stumps. The TV umpire decided that there was insufficient "evidence" that the ball had taken a touch. No problem with that. My issue is that no-one even thought of asking Gibson. His word counted for nothing.

It's a horrible place that the world of sport is heading to if football referees mistakes are abused far more than those of an international player; and when a respected cricketers word counts for nothing. Be concerned.