Complex sentence: There was also dispute over whether Cribb had managed to return to the line before the allowed thirty seconds had passed--if he had not, Molineaux would have won--but in the confusion the referee could not tell, and the fight went on.
Split into simpler sentences: There was also dispute over whether Cribb had managed to return to the line before the allowed thirty seconds had passed. If he had not, Molineaux would have won, but in the confusion the referee could not tell and the fight went on.