Herbert Fandel was not the only referee making the news. Josip Simunic will be sorry to hear that Graham Poll is retiring from international soccer next week. The Croatia vs Australia match in the 2006 World Cup was definitely Poll’s defining moment. He was sent back home after that match.
Poll officiated the Championship playoff between Derby and West Brom which was his last domestic match. His decision to retire early was influenced by his perception that he was not supported by the FA in the John Terry dismissal.
However Poll is not going quietly into the night. He has a tell all book called Seeing Red coming out in summer which will probably have harsh words for Jose Mourinho, the FA, and overpaid players who disrespect referees. Poll’s book probably has some good points to be made about how thankless a referee’s job is. And seeing what took place in the Denmark vs Sweden game, dangerous too.
Graham Poll’s World Cup fiasco (Video here)