Goorjian Questions Referee Criticism

Another game between Illawarra and Sydney, and another war of words has erupted. 

On the eve of the teams' semi final series, Hawks' coach Brian Goorjian admitted he was “disappointed” and “uncomfortable” with the criticism directed at one particular referee by Kings' coach Chase Buford and forward Xavier Cooks.

Buford and Cooks publicly called out and named an official after and during Sydney’s game against Illawarra, which Goorjian reacted strongly to.

With the rivals set to clash in a fiery series beginning on Friday night, Goorjian voiced his concerns with the comments.

“I was really disappointed... I've been in this competition for a number of years. There's no bias. There's no favouritism with these guys,” Goorjian said of the referees.

“What we have now in the competition, you have the ability to challenge a call. So, if you have a problem, challenge it, but to call a referee out personally, at halftime and after the game, where does that take us into this series?

“What does that do with the opportunity for this guy (to ref the series)? How are they going to feel coming into the game?

“You're stirring a box... I'm uncomfortable with it.

“I've tried to handle myself in all the situations here with class and respect. I've had my issues with stuff that I've questioned with the referees, but I've never thought for any minute that a referee is against my team.

“It's just about how the games being called, what adjustments do we make. I've been in this a long time, there's no referees purposely going against teams.”

The Hawks will be out to redeem themselves after they lost last year’s semis to Perth, despite taking a 1-0 lead.

Game one between Illawarra and Sydney is scheduled for Friday night at 7:30pm AEST at the WIN Entertainment Centre. The game will be broadcast on ESPN and Kayo Freebies.