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World Cup: Officials’ Hall of Shame

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Now that the poor officiating at the World Cup has even made FIFA President Sepp Blatter pull his head out of the sand and agree that something has to be done, a South African newspaper felt free to publish its ‘Top Ten List of the Worst Refereeing Decisions.’

The envelope please:

1. Germany vs. England: How Uruguayan linesman Mauricio Espinosa failed to notice that Frank Lampard’s shot had crossed the line after rattling the underside of the bar defies logic. It was indeed the worst in the history of the World Cup.

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2. U.S. vs. Slovenia: Koman Coulibaly ended his World Cup by denying the U.S. a perfectly legitimate goal -- and a victory -- when he disallowed Maurice Edu’s strike.

3. Brazil vs. Ivory Coast: French referee Stephane Lannoy failed to see two handball moves by Brazil’s Luis Fabiano in the run-up to his second goal. He also sent off Kaka when the Brazil star gently nudged an opponent. It was Kaka’s first-ever red card.

4. Argentina vs. Mexico: One of the worst calls -- a missed offside by Stefano Ayroldi on Argentine Carlos Tevez’s first goal in a 3-1 win.

5. Argentina vs. Nigeria: Referee Wolfgang Stark did not see an Argentine player holding a Nigerian opponent while Gabriel Heinze scored the only goal of the game.

6. Germany vs. Serbia: Alberto Undiano red-carded Germany’s Miroslav Klose for a foul that never was. The mistake could have cost Germany as they missed Klose in their next game with Ghana.

7. France vs. South Africa: Colombian referee Oscar Ruiz sent off France’s Yoann Gorucuff for a foul on South Africa’s MacBeth Sibaya. TV replays showed it was nothing of the kind.

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8. Australia vs. Germany: Australia’s Tim Cahill got the first red card of the World Cup, except it should never have been given. Mexican referee Marco Rodriguez was the culprit.

9. New Zealand vs. Italy: Shane Smeltz’s offside goal leads to one of the shocks of the World Cup. It came after a poor call by a linesman.

10. Chile vs. Spain: Marco Rodriguez -- again -- sent off Chile’s Marco Estrada for tripping Fernando Torres. TV replays showed it was clearly accidental.

-- Kevin Baxter in Johannesburg, South Africa

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