Riley Causes Riot

Last updated : 15 January 2006 By Matt Bottom
Wanderers lost Hidestoshi Nakata in the 33rd minute when the Japanese midfielder was dismissed after picking up two yellow cards.

The Bolton boss told Sky Prem Plus: "I see it like this. Hidestoshi Nakata committed three fouls and got sent off; Robbie Savage committed three fouls and didn't get booked. The statistics don't stand up unfortunately when Mike Riley referees us.

"Give me a minute, and I will just prove what the referee has done today and what he's done in the past. He's refereed us seven times, and we've had five players sent off - four in the first half.

"Those stats say it all. It's blatant inconsistency - in my opinion simply not good enough. The statistics speak for themselves.

"He's nearly caused a riot here today when our fans decided to jump over the fence. I don't think that's caused by players; it's caused by some of the refereeing.

"It's nothing against Robbie Savage, or any Blackburn player - you just look for consistency. Then it gets out of hand, and the referee loses control, and there's people flying all over the place. We've done very well to keep our heads."