NFL

Fill-in referees ‘hold’ back Giants in opener

If you were on the losing end of last night’s 24-17 Cowboys win over the Giants, there was surely much to nitpick when it came to the controversial replacement referees.

The Giants, to their credit, did not bellyache about blown calls, although there were plenty of hints about calls that could or should have been made.

The most egregious play took place in the second quarter when it appeared Eli Manning had Victor Cruz open at the goal line, but Cruz was clearly being held by Cowboys cornerback Orlando Scandrick before the release of the pass.

There was no call by the officials and the Giants were forced to settle for a field goal.

Asked if he thought Cruz was held, Tom Coughlin said, “Oh, for sure he was. It was more than a hold. There’s another word for it.’’

Coughlin then softened his stance, saying, “They’re trying to do the very best they can. That’s just the nature of what we’re working with right now. It’s just part of the game. Any [referee] can miss a call. It just happened in a key situation. It would have been nice to get that call.’’

Giants linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka, while wondering aloud how the Giants front seven didn’t draw a single holding call on the Cowboys, said, “I respect the job the replacement refs are doing, but to go out there on this short notice and pick up the nuances with a game of this speed is difficult.’’

The Cowboys were actually called for more penalties (13 for 86 yards, including numerous false starts on offense) than the Giants, who were called for just four for 33 yards.