Were red cards given out too easily in AFCB v Everton?

Referees have a hard job but they are the ones who want that responsibility and some even thrive on it. But they can also destroy a game with one decision and fans pay good money to hopefully see 11 men against 11 men on the pitch in football's purest form. So do we feel cheated when players are sent off? If it happens to the opposition we are more than satisfied, but when it happens to your team it is a disgrace. The referee has to remove himself from any influences, but I wonder how easy it was for Lee Probert to send Adam Smith off after he had already given a straight red to Richarlison in the match between Bournemouth and Everton?

Adam Smith at Dean Court before his incident-packed aftenoon.

The first incident was very strange in that the ball was not even in play, but out for a throw-in after Brooks I thing had kicked the ball out of play. Adam Smith and Richarlison were some distance apart at first on Bournemouth's right wing, but they soon closed in on each other and I imagine some words were exchanged which led to Richarlison's reaction. For an instance, Richarlison forgot where he was as you can't level your head against another player and press up against them before making a headbutt however light. 

Adam Smith's reaction was like a playground spat and while he didn't fall down. He wanted to make sure the referee knew exactly what had happened. It is all in the realms of play acting and stupidity and neither player does themselves any favours from such incidents. On this occasion  Lee Probert decided Richarlison had to go and it is hard to make a case for the Everton player to have been allowed to stay on the pitch, given his reaction as mentally he had overstepped the line by even having an intention to hit out at Adam Smith with his head.

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The second incident with Adam Smith tugging back Theo Walcott I saw as a professional foul. Smith was beaten and Walcott was going past him. While other players were chasing back, Smith knew what he was doing and took the risk thinking he would get a yellow card at most, but Lee Probert chose to level things up with a red card. If the game had not seen any cards and that had been the first foul of the game, I'm not sure Adam Smith would have seen red. It was a foul though and it was cheating and it's up to the referee to decide how severe the penalty should be.

When I look at the overall picture of the game I have to wonder if it was a really bad tempered game and one that merited two sending offs. It seemed a bit over the top to send two players off and I wonder if yellow cards could have been issued instead? Would the game have had a much different outcome and would we have seen a less exciting game? Would it rewarded two players who should be punished for making mistakes? I don't have all the answers, but red cards are part of the game and it's up to the players not to give referees that opportunity to have a decision to make.

In the end, I don't blame the referee for trying to manage the game, it is the players that create the situation and they have to take the consequences knowing that they take a risk whenever they challenge the rules of the game with their actions.

In other news, it has been confirmed Michael Keane suffered a fractured skull in the match between Bournemouth and Everton. We wish him all the best and a full and speedy recovery.