Manchester United legend and Salford City co-owner Gary Neville was left questioning the antics of Bristol City loanee Joe Low after his theatrical fall led to a sending-off at the weekend.
Low, currently on loan with Walsall, was in action against Salford in their League Two match-up, with the Manchester-based side running out 3-2 winners during an entertaining fixture at the Bescot Stadium.
The incident in question arrived in the 53rd minute, with Salford 1-0 ahead through Callum Hendry's early goal. Footage online shows centre-back Low making a strong but fair challenge on former Barcelona prospect Barry as he broke into Walsall's half.
The 19-year-old, currently on loan from Aston Villa, reacted angrily to the challenge and pushed Low in the chest. The City defender then took a tumble to the ground, holding his face.
After a few tussles from both sets of players, the official showed a red card to Barry, reducing them to 10 men for the majority of the second half. The drama continued when Jamille Matt took advantage of the extra man nine minutes later before an eventful end to the contest.
Conor McAleny put the visitors 2-1 ahead in the 88th minute before Conor Wilkinson equalised for Walsall in the fifth minute of added time. Almost immediately from kick-off, Salford went up the other end with Matthew Lund scoring a dramatic last-gasp winner to leave Walsall in 17th position.
After seeing footage of Barry's sending off surface on Twitter, Neville responded: "Wow that’s a shirt grab! The big lad fooled us all.. Never a red." He then confirmed Salford will appeal the sending-off.
Low, 21, joined Walsall at the beginning of January on loan until the end of the season and has featured 12 times in the league for the Saddlers. The club sacked manager Michael Flynn last week having only won once this calendar year.
The City defender is a throwback to the traditional no-nonsense centre-back, dominant aerially and strong in the challenge as he continues to develop in his first regular taste of senior football. Low had previous loan spells in the Southern Premier Division South with Dorchester Town, Frome Town and Yate before spending the first half of the 2021-22 season with National League side Eastleigh.
His impressive performances captaining the Under-21s in the first half of the campaign earned him a senior debut for the Reds as a late substitute in the 1-1 draw against Middlesbrough in November. Low then started in the 3-1 League Cup defeat against Lincoln City but was taken off at half-time following a difficult 45 minutes.
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