REFEREE Howard Webb and his assistant Jim Devine achieved the seemingly impossible at Ewood Park on Saturday; they managed to make themselves even more unpopular than Lucas Neill.

West Ham defender Neill was predictably chastised by the Blackburn public on his Rovers return, but by the end of an astonishing game, which featured the goal that never was, a penalty that never should have been, and one of the most ludicrous sending off decisions you are ever likely to witness, Mr Webb and his sidekick had become the subjects of the crowd's fury.

This was a black day for Blackburn, and indeed a black day for football, as West Ham, helped by some Devine intervention, grabbed the most unlikely of victories to give themselves new hope in their desperate battle to avoid relegation from the Premier League.

Even Alan Curbishley, the West Ham manager, later admitted Bobby Zamora's controversial 75th minute should never have been allowed to stand because the ball had clearly not crossed the line.

Not that that was any consolation to his opposite number, Mark Hughes, of course, who looked in danger of self-combusting as he conducted a post-mortem examination into a damaging defeat, which may well have serious implications in regard to Rovers' European aspirations.

Hughes was boiling, and rightly so, after a catalogue of mistakes by the officials had contributed to his side's downfall.

After Chris Samba had soared above the West Ham defence to head Rovers in front two minutes into the second half, Mr Webb, who controversially pointed to the penalty spot following a tangle between Brett Emerton and Carlos Tevez, then handed the visitors a lifeline.

Anticipating a shot by the Hammers striker, Emerton slid in to make a block on the right hand side of the area, but Tevez checked back instead and in the process of applying the brakes, the Argentine lost his footing on the greasy turf.

If there was any contact from Emerton then it was minimal, and certainly not enough to warrant a penalty, but that is exactly what Mr Webb awarded, and Tevez made no mistake from the spot: 1-1. And suddenly West Ham were back from the dead.

If that wasn't bad enough, then what happened for the second goal, five minutes later, almost defied belief.

Hayden Mullins powered in a header from a corner, which Lee Bowyer flicked goalwards, but