NOTTINGHAM head coach Corey Neilson had some strong words for referee Rab Cowan after the Panthers’ loss in Braehead last weekend: “He was poor. He was inept. It was unjust.” Following the 4–2 defeat, Neilson’s comments were biting – and, according to the league, enough to merit a fine.

With any league, in any sport, officials are rarely celebrated as omniscient paragons of neutrality. More often they’re deemed, at best, an optically challenged moron – and at worst a bribed villain. The EIHL is no different in this regard – but as a relatively young and still-developing competition, accusations of incompetent or inexperienced officiating may be more justified in the Elite League than elsewhere.

Neilson for one certainly doesn’t think the Stripes are up to scratch – at least north of the border. Indignant after Cowan’s performance on Sunday, he claimed “the referee is always the turning point when you come to Scotland.” Officials are moved around as much as possible, but their being part-time and few in number means that Elite League teams inevitably see some referees more often than others – and Neilson clearly doesn’t hold the Scottish mainstays in high regard.

Neilson didn’t just say that Cowan was incompetent – he seemed to imply that even stronger evil, bias: “it’s the fact he doesn’t call anything against the Braehead Clan.” Now though Rab Cowan is a Scot – and you’d struggle not to be with a name like that – I don’t think the force Neilson felt was at play was Scottish favouritism. Rather, it was more likely a presumed case of good old home-team bias.

We can take a look at the stats to see how this suggestion of host advantage bears out. A good statistic to check here is the average penalty minutes given to each team per game this season. If we look at the average penalty minutes given to each team when playing at home, compared to the average minutes given to the visitors, then we can maybe get an idea of any home advantage which might be at play.

It turns out that seven of the ten Elite League teams average fewer penalty minutes at home when compared to their opponents – which certainly suggests a clear host’s advantage in terms of favourable calls. But, supporting Neilson’s accusation, the three teams with the greatest difference by proportion are Dundee, Fife, and Braehead, in that order – with Dundee spending just 62% as much time in the box as their guests.

However, this alone doesn’t prove that there’s home-biased refereeing in Scotland – we need to examine the same stats for teams when playing on the road too. In fact, Dundee, Fife, and Braehead again all receive fewer minutes than their hosts – albeit by smaller margins than when playing at home. They are in the top four of just five sides that are less penalised when playing away – suggesting that perhaps simply clean play is the real force behind their low penalty numbers.

The thing is that, although players’ actions – their clean or dirty play – is the most relevant aspect of an official’s decision on the ice, the strongest influence is perception. Clearly a referee missing a high sticking is an example of perception – or lack of it – leading to an infuriating non-call. So-called ‘reputation calls’ can go against a player with a known history of dirty play.

Much more subtly, some studies have shown connections drawn between the colour of an NHL team’s jersey and the number of penalties they receive, with darker colours – and especially black – being penalised much greater than lighter ones.

And let’s not forget the roaring disapproval of the home crowd.

Is there referee bias in the Elite League? Certainly – but only in so far as the officials are human, with the flawed and necessarily unobjective perception that goes with that. If the indignant booing of home fans sways the referee’s decisions their way, then perhaps that’s just part of the home advantage. Neilson’s frustration is understandable, but speaking out against the officials in such a way is neither fair nor helpful.