Mladost's statement after the match with Mornar: The refereeing was shameful and unacceptable for the level of competition we are in

Football club Mladost Lob.Bet issued a press release after last night's defeat to Mornar in Danilovgrad (3:2) in the third round of the MeridianBet First Montenegrin Football League.

In a statement, the club from Donja Gorica points out that it is addressing the public regarding the refereeing at last night's match, in which, as the club says, "two major and direct refereeing errors by referee Marko Ćupić decided the winner."

We are publishing the Mladost Lob.Bet press release in its entirety:

"OFK Mladost Donja Gorica would like to address the public regarding the refereeing at last night's game, in which two major and direct refereeing errors by referee Marko Ćupić decided the winner.

When our team conceded the first goal, the assistant referee awarded a corner kick even though the ball had clearly left the field after contact with a player from the opposing team. The main referee, although he was only a few meters away from the situation, accepted the assistant's suggestion. We conceded a goal from that corner kick.

With the second goal, the situation is even clearer. Just a few meters from the main referee, our player was clearly fouled from behind, with both hands, but the referee did not react and did not call a foul. From the continuation of that action, we conceded the second goal.

We do not want to look for an alibi for the defeat, nor to diminish what the opponent showed on the field. However, when two key situations directly affect the result, we have an obligation to react and protect the interests of our club.

We believe that this kind of refereeing was shameful and unacceptable for the level of competition we are in. Of particular concern is the fact that the second situation occurred just three meters from the head referee.

The refereeing errors were not minor nor did they occur at insignificant moments in the game – they directly preceded the goals and therefore directly decided the winner.

We expect the competent authorities to analyze the disputed situations and take responsibility to prevent such things from happening in the future.

"OFK Mladost Donja Gorica will always accept a sporting result when it is a consequence of what happens on the field. But we will also not remain silent when we believe that major refereeing decisions directly influenced the outcome of the match," Mladost Lob.Bet announced.