Steve Bruce reveals the apology he received after West Brom beat Fulham

Steve Bruce has revealed referee Kevin Friend apologised to him after West Bromwich Albion’s 1-0 win over Fulham on Tuesday.

Albion sealed their first win under Bruce at The Hawthorns courtesy of Callum Robinson’s second half strike. The victory over table-topping Fulham moved the Baggies up to 12th in the Championship, six points off the play-offs.

Bruce’s post-match press conference centred around his team’s brilliant performance, but it could have been different had Albion not eventually made the breakthrough via Robinson’s cool 63rd minute finish.

Albion were denied what Bruce described as a ‘stonewall penalty’ in the first half after Fulham midfielder Harrison Reed clashed with Alex Mowatt inside the box. Mowatt clearly got to the ball first and Reed kicked the back of the Albion man’s leg.

Friend, who usually officiates in the Premier League, wasn’t interested in Mowatt’s appeals at the time, but he has since reviewed the incident and apologised to Bruce.

“To be fair to Kevin Friend, he has apologised to us straight away which was quite refreshing,” said Bruce. “A Premier League referee and he needed VAR.

“It was a stonewall penalty and he’s missed it. But at least he’s had the decency to apologise, which is good. Thankfully we didn’t need it, or it might have been a different story from me.”