Nugent red card sparks anger from Maamria

DINO MAAMRIA fears Ben Nugent’s red card could send his Stevenage team into a downward spiral after Crewe left with all three points.

Nugent was sent off against his old club just 12 minutes into the match and Crewe dominated thereafter, with Jordan Bowery’s second-half strike enough to give his side the win.

Nugent was adjudged to have hauled down Shaun Miller, but Maamria labelled the decision as “horrific”.

“To say I’m fuming is an understatement,” he said. “They weren’t sure. The referee [Craig Hicks] didn’t see it, he wasn’t sure it’s a red card, but the linesman’s adamant it’s a red card.

“I watched the footage after the game, it’s a ball over the top and he slowed down so Nuge [Ben Nugent] could bump into him.

“It’s not just that, when their player had a touch of the ball, by the time he took that touch Scott Cuthbert was ahead of him.

“It’s not a sending off in a million years. You’ve got to be so sure to send someone off after 12 minutes.

“A sending off is a clear opportunity to score a goal. He actually lost control of the ball.

“We will appeal that because Ben Nugent wasn’t the last man. It’s a horrific decision. It hasn’t just changed momentum of the game but it’s changed the momentum of the season.”

The result means that Stevenage have lost three of the past four games and they struggled to create chances against a Crewe side who dominated possession.

George Ray had a first-half goal ruled out for a foul but Bowery scored just after the hour mark with a superb strike with the outside of his boot.

The forward then blocked Alex Revell’s goalbound strike at the other end, while Chris Porter later hit a post for Crewe. “Let’s be honest, the sending off changed the game,” said Crewe boss David Artell.

“It had a massive impact on the game. It was a sending off, make no bones about it, he was the last man. Cuthbert wasn’t getting round, it was a blatant and clear sending off.

“It was a big call and I’m glad that one went for us because we’ve had three this season that haven’t.

“They were all similar so the referee has done well. From that point on we dominated the game.”