Frustrated Saints boss Mark Hughes has vented his frustration over the performance of referee Simon Hooper and questioned whether the official would have been appointed for a higher profile game.

Saints were livid that Hooper ruled out what appeared to be a perfectly good Charlie Austin goal that would have put them 2-0 up at home to Watford in a game they went on to draw 1-1.

Hooper also appeared to get one wrong at the other end as he failed to give a penalty against Ryan Bertrand.

Hughes, who also called for the introduction of VAR, said: “Clearly it was a goal that should have stood.

“I talked to the officials as the game continued and they were trying to make out Maya Yoshida was in an offside position and it’s gone off your man. Not from where I was standing.

“They have asked the assistant referee whether he was in an offside position which he was, slightly, but it must have been the referee that has given the decision that Yoshida has touched the ball on the way in, which is ridiculous really as he was about a foot and half away from it.

“From our point of view it’s a match defining moment, a game changing decision that they have got wrong.

“All we ask for as managers, coaches and players is that in key moments in games where the result is at risk or the outcome of the game is dependent on them getting the correct decision at that moment they have to get it correct. Unfortunately, they didn’t today.

“We have been given an inexperienced referee. I don’t know how many games he’s had. Four.

“To us our game is as significant to us as the Manchester derby. Would PGMOL have given him that game?

“Absolutely not but to us this game is even more important.

“For us to have a referee that on the day wasn’t quite up the standard required is hard to take I have to say.

“I have to be careful because I’ve been doing this a long time and over the years clearly I will question referees. It seems like ‘it’s Mark Hughes again and he’s blaming referees.’ “I think anybody there who has seen the incident will say I’ve got a decent case I think.”

Hughes was, though, pleased with the performance of his team.

“I thought the performance deserved what we should have had which was the three points,” he insisted. “It was a good performance individually and collectively and we came out with good intent in the first half.

“I think the only causes of worry for ourselves was of our own making where we got caught in poor positions and they had opportunities off the back of that but in general play I thought we were the better team.

“We got ourselves in a position where scoring the second goal would have finished the game in my view and that would have been the least we deserved.

“At the moment things are slightly going against us but we shouldn’t worry about. We should stick our chests out and use it and build on it and get confidence from it and that’s what we will do.”