Dean in charge of cup tie

I described him then as a referee who delivered more cards than the post office and nothing has changed. Last season his red card count reached double figures whilst he passed the 150 total for yellow cards.

This season, in just 24 games, he's already reached 90 yellow cards and an incredible nine red cards. The red card victims are too numerous to mention, but three of them went in the same game between Manchester City and Spurs at the City of Manchester Stadium whilst another two were sent off in the Sheffield derby.

The most recent of the red cards was given to Aston Villa's Ashley Young in a controversial game at the Stadium of Light against Sunderland, a game that perhaps the home side would have won had some very strange penalty decisions not gone against them (you see it's not just us).

His only two red cards in Burnley games both came in the 2-2 draw at Bradford City in 2002 and the less said about that game the better. As for the yellow cards, they are fairly even with 44 of them going to home team players and 46 to away team players. We can therefore expect some cards tomorrow whilst at least knowing West Brom are just as likely to get them as us.

It is interesting that Dean rates George Courtney as the best referee he's seen. He said he had the respect of the players and used common sense (when you were allowed to). Surely Mr Dean is not suggesting referees are no longer allowed to use common sense.

Tomorrow will be his fourth West Brom game this season, and his third at the Hawthorns.

He will be assisted by Bob Pollock (Merseyside) and Stephen Artis (Norfolk) whilst the fourth official will be the Football League referee who so upset Owen Coyle at Charlton, Rob Shoebridge (Derbyshire).

Previous Burnley games:

Season	Opps	V	Res	Y	R	Burnley players carded
a
1997/98	Bournemouth	h	2-2	3	0	.
1997/98	Luton	h	1-1	3	0	Cooke
1998/99	Walsall	a	1-3	4	0	Armstrong Brass Payton
1999/2000	Chesterfield	h	2-1	2	0	Cowan
1999/2000	Wigan	h	0-0	5	0	Johnrose Thomas
2000/01	Crystal Palace	h	2-2	1	0	.
2002/03	Bradford City	a	2-2	6	2	Cook Papadopoulos Taylor
2003/04	Bradford City	h	4-0	0	0	.
2003/04	Preston	a	3-5	4	0	Blake Gnohere West
2003/04	Ipswich	h	4-2	3	0	Chaplow McGregor
2004/05	Blackburn	h	0-0	5	0	Camara Hyde
2005/06	Leeds	h	1-2	6	0	Harley Hyde Sinclair
2005/06	Crystal Palace	h	0-0	4	0	Branch Harley
2006/07	Sunderland	h	2-2	3	0	Hyde
2006/07	Leicester	h	0-1	3	0	Caldwell
2007/08	Blackpool	h	2-2	2	0	Akinbiyi Caldwell