Champions more and less on top (Chelsea vs Blackburn 27/08/06)

Champions Chelsea took the victory Ewood Park and were good value for it as well despite a spirited effort by a Blackburn team keen to complete a momentous double over the Blues having done for them at the end of last term. The score might have looked a little different though had both teams had penalties awarded by referee Mark Clattenburg. For the first Kalou was fouled by Lucas Neil, and the second might have come courtesy of Carvalho’s heavy challenge on Roberts…

The panel saw both incidents as clear penalties and so although the points allocation doesn’t change, The Right Result is actually 3-1 to champions Chelsea.

City take the points but not The Right Result? (Manchester City vs Arsenal 26/08/06)

Stuart Pearce’s outfit took the points at the City of Manchester stadium, but there were a number of key decisions that would have put a different spin on the outcome had things been seen differently. Here they are:

Paul Dickov was felled in the area only for his claim to be waved off

City’s penalty would not have been awarded had the referee correctly identified a foul on Francesc Fabregas at the start of the move which led to Justin Hoyte conceding a the penalty which allowed them to open the scoring.

Arsenal had two very strong penalty claims of their own when first Fabregas was brought down in the area, and then later on when Dutch striker Robin Van Persie was clearly pushed.

The Right Result panel concluded that Dickov should have been awarded a penalty, but that the penalty they were awarded was incorrect due to the foul on Fabregas. Furthermore (and no doubt to the chagrin of Blues fans) the panel also felt that both of Arsenal’s penalty claims were meritorious, and so The Right Result is a 2-1 victory for Arsenal.

Wigan edge Reading but scoreline belies ease (Wigan Athletic vs Reading 26/08/06)

Paul Jewell’s side took the points against the Royals but a comfortable victory should have had a more comfortable looking scoreline, particularly after Graham Kavanagh’s penalty shout…

The panel decided that Kavanagh was indeed fouled in the Reading area and so the ensuing penalty makes The Right Result 2-0 to Wigan.

Crouch goal stretches win margin (Liverpool vs West Ham 26/08/06)

In their first encounter since the FA Cup final classic these two teams served up in May, Liverpool eventually ran out 2-1 winners over the Hammers after the away team had set the pace with a freak goal from Bobby Zamora courtesy of Pepe Reina on 12 minutes. And although the Reds would be happy enough with the score as it was, their win would doubtless have been more comfortable had ref Alan Wiley seen Crouch being pulled down in the penalty area…

The panel give a penalty for the foul on Crouch and The Right Result is a 3-1 victory for Liverpool.

Double Jeopardy for Pompey (Manchester City vs Pompey 23/08/06)

Not only did Pedro Mendes suffer the most breathtakingly vicious and disgraceful assault on a football pitch since Harold Schumacher did for the unfortunate Patrick Battiston in the ‘82 World Cup, Harry Redknapp won’t have been thrilled by referee Dermot Gallagher allowing Micah Richards to get away with a handball that would have allowed Pompey to nick the three points…

The Right Result panel see the incident as a clear penalty and so the result swings in Pompey’s favour for a 1-0 draw.

Fortunate home side take point? (Everton vs Blackburn 23/08/06)

Aussie dynamo Tim Cahill may have scored a dramatic late equalizer over at Ewood Park to rescue a point, but the home side can count themselves lucky that it wasn’t the winner after the referee had earlier declined to award Everton a penalty for Andy Todd’s foul on Andrew Johnson…

The panel decide that the penalty should indeed have been given, and the result now swings in favour of Everton for a 2-1 away victory.

Bolton flattered by fortunate opener (Bolton vs Spurs 19/08/2006)

Despite being undeniably good value for a win overall, Sam Allardyce’s Trotters were fortunate to take the lead and the momentum over Spurs when Abdoulaye Meite held back Calum Davenport, allowing Kevin Davies a free header which he duly converted to open Bolton’s 06/07 account…

The Right Result panel over-ruled Bolton’s opening strike as a result of Meite’s heavy-handed restraint of Davenport. The match result still reflects a victory for The Trotters, but by a narrower margin at 1-0.

Toon in tune as Wigan suffer (Newcastle vs Wigan 19/08/06)

Newcastle kicked off their campaign with a win but Wiganers will feel they might well have shared the points from the season opener when Titus Bramble handled in the box in the dying minutes only for the ref to wave the incident away…

The panel decided that the referee in fact got it spot on (or not as it turned out for Wigan fans!) and there was no penalty as the handball was an unintentional ball-to-hand. The score remains 2-1 to the men in black and white.

Boro heartbreak as Viduka’s equaliser denied (Middlesbrough vs Reading 19/08/06)

A high quality EPL debut from a Reading outfit who can have every confidence about the forthcoming season notwithstanding, Gareth Southgate’s Middlesbrough will consider themselves unfortunate that Aussie hitman Mark Viduka’s 82 minute equaliser was disallowed for offside at the Madejski Stadium…

Although not being renowned for the sort of searing pace that can often deceive line judges, replays clearly show that Mark Viduka was unfortunate to have his goal disallowed. The panel decided that it stands and so the Right Result is 3-3.

Gerrard penalty scrapes Liverpool a point (Liverpool vs Sheffield United 19/08/06)

Whilst Neil Warnock would have probably settled for a point at the start of a tough opening Premier League game, by the end of it he would no doubt have been sick as a dog when referee Rob Styles adjudged that Chris Morgan had tripped up Liverpool skipper Steven Gerrard…

 A tough call for the panel but the video evidence was eventually considered to be inconclusive and so the penalty, and therefore the 1-1 draw, stands.