ROVERS 1 ARSENAL 1: Priest's unholy intervention

The yellow flag of linesman Barry Priest was more like a red rag to a bull as it gave Arsenal a penalty and left Rovers needing more than a wing and a prayer to claim the last UEFA Cup place.

It signalled a way back into the game for Arsenal against a side, by then reduced to 10 men, and could well have heralded the last post for Ewood's Euro hopes, just when it seemed they were about to be boosted.

What a pity the same linesman hadn't been at the other end for the previous 15 minutes or so.

A little bit of semaphore from the line, to "assist" the referee, might well have seen at least one spot kick given to Rovers which could have made Ian Wright's point-saving penalty strike irrelevant.

Arsenal will claim they deserved to take at least a point.

But, until that final period, Rovers looked a better bet to add to their early lead from Kevin Gallacher than the Gunners did to wipe it out.

Then fate took a hand.

Under today's interpretations of the rules, referee Keith Cooper had no option but to send off Billy McKinlay for a second bookable offence.

In this case, it wasn't a case of blaming the ref but the regulations which continue to present a sinister threat to the way the game has been played in this country for generations.

McKinlay was in the wrong but players are becoming increasingly fearful of committing themselves to a tackle and that is removing an integral part of the game.

Midfield players, not as wise or skilful as defenders in the art of tackling, seem to be suffering most, even when the offence is mis-timing rather than malice.

But, while Mr Cooper was sharp-eyed enough to spot McKinlay's errors and - in the present climate - rightly show him the red card, where was he when crucial decisions went against Rovers at the other end?

Twice there were strong penalty claims as both Graham Fenton and Tim Sherwood looked to be blatantly felled in the box.

There was no linesman taking a crucial role in either case and Rovers missed out on what would surely have been a decisive second goal against an Arsenal team whose stars failed to shine until the odds tipped in their favour.

When the going had been tough, some were hard to find.

Like it or not, decisions are too often having a direct bearing on results.

Mr Cooper, stepping into retirement with the jeers of the Ewood crowd ringing in his ears, even found himself cautioning Tim Flowers, the genial goalkeeper unable to contain his frustrations.

By the end, it could have been worse, as Flowers and Colin Hendry pulled off two remarkable stops as some of Arsenal's previously anonymous stars belatedly began to make their presence felt.

But it might have been so much better for a Rovers team who did really well for an hour or so.

Tim Sherwood and McKinlay were a magnificent midfield in the first half, it was just a pity that the Scot spoiled his contribution with an early exit.

And he is clearly going to have to curb the natural aggression which may have been allowed in Scottish football but which is being drummed out of the game in England.

If you mistime a tackle, you are going to pick up a caution and the player should not have dived in on Dennis Bergkamp.

The Dutchman was only drifting through the game anyway, hardly an influence on his team's patchy performance.

With the wide men buzzing and Kevin Gallacher sending a clear Euro 96 message to Craig Brown up front, Rovers survived a couple of early scares to dominate.

But the balance of power shifted yet again with the dismissal of McKinlay forcing a holding operation.

The game turned in a crucial nine-minute spell midway through the second half.

In that time, Fenton was bundled over by Martin Keown as he was about to shoot - no penalty.

Then McKinlay saw red on 62 minutes and the air turned blue six minutes later when Sherwood was stopped by substitute Paul Shaw. It looked a clear penalty, but not according to the officials.

There had been little hint of the drama to come in the first half, when Rovers took the lead on 13 minutes through an easy strike by Gallacher on the end of a terrific build-up.

McKinlay showed great vision and superb passing skill to release Jason Wilcox on the left with a tremendous ball.

Wilcox had timed his run to perfection and, as David Seaman advanced, the winger lobbed the ball over him towards goal.

It's doubtful it would have gone in, but Gallacher had closed in for the kill anyway and swept it home from close range.

Rovers played some lovely football without being able to find the finishing touch, while Arsenal threatened sporadically.

Wright struck a post after Flowers had made a super save, then Graham Fenton got a David Platt header off the line from a corner.

Rovers seemed happy to bide their time at the start of the second half with Arsenal's big guns looking spiked, especially with Hendry so dominant.

But McKinlay, booked two minutes into the half, lunged at Bergkamp and, suddenly, it was another backs to the wall battle.

Gallacher, working incessantly across the line, almost embarrassed Seaman when the keeper tried to clear.

He eventually missed the target when he might have done better.

Within minutes, Hendry tried to shadow a ball out for a goal kick, Ray Parlour looked as though he might nick it and the two went down in a tangle of legs.

It looked innocuous compared to the other appeals but the linesman flagged for a penalty.

When the fuss had died down, the stark reality was that Wright had a spot kick to even the scores.

And, even though he had been distinctly second best to Hendry, he doesn't often turn down that sort of gift.

A well-struck low drive in Flowers' bottom right-hand corner, as the keeper went the other way, proved enough.

Rovers didn't give up the fight but it could have gone against them even more as Platt frittered away a golden opportunity and, somehow, they survived one hectic piece of penalty area action when both Hendry and Flowers were heroes again.

The first home draw since the early days of the season doesn't look enough for Europe.

But, perhaps it was appropriate in a season which has seen more than its share of controversy, that we should end the home fixtures discussing the contribution of the officials.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.