The referee decided the Chorlton Villa player made the noise deliberately and booked him for "ungentlemanly conduct". The spot-kick, which was saved, was retaken. The second time it went in. Villa's goalkeeper was then sent off for saying the referee was "the worst he had seen in years". And another Villa player was dismissed minutes later for questioning the earlier decision.

Despite finishing down to eight men, thanks to another sending off, Villa beat International Manchester 6-4 in the match in Stretford. The referee, who asked not to be named, said: "The players who I sent off did obey my instructions and left the field. They were not a nasty lot. It was just a normal day at the office. No one physically assaulted me and they took the sendings off."

Ian Treadwell, Villa's manager, said: "It was a mistake for any of my team to get involved. The referee has applied the letter of the law to the absolute button. What you would hope for is that there can be room for some common sense as well."

The original was here