As usual the rookie referees are making a name for themselves, and the three new boys are well placed in our top ten. The latest to join the pack was Lizondo Cortés, who managed to produce thirteen yellow cards and one red in the game between the two sides with the hardest reputations in the league, Espanyol and Sevilla.

None of the three were involved in the most controversial decisions of the weekend though. On Saturday Pérez Burrull turned down Real Sociedad's appeals for a goal and / or penalty when Mallorca's Cortés blocked the ball standing over the line with his arms, and almost at the same time Megia Dávila was disallowing a goal by Betis striker Dani against Depor for dangerous play by Palermo which wasn't really. And on Sunday Rodríguez Santiago upset the Celta fans when he disallowed a perfectly good goal from Milosevic and also turned down claims for a penalty on the striker, and Moreno Delgado disallowed a Valladolid goal for an offside that wasn't and allowed a later goal despite an offside that was.

Spare a thought too for Medina Cantalejo, who reached into his top pocket to book Zaragoza's Rebosio and found to his horror that he had left his cards behind. Like a good soldier though he didn't let that phase him, and waved his hand in front of the defender as if he had a yellow card in his hand. Talk about the king with no clothes! (25.11.03)