No Bally this time

Last updated : 21 March 2003 By Tony Scholes

It’s over two years ago and was the local derby against Blackburn and he sent off Bally for what the player described as a mis-timed tackle on David Dunn. Some would say it was so late we are still waiting for it to arrive and that was the view that Stretton had and he sent Bally off.

It wasn’t his first Lancashire derby involving Burnley, he had refereed our game at Preston in the Waddle season, a game we won 3-2, and during that game he booked Cookey for diving. To his credit though he watched the video and withdrew the card.

He has been in charge of only one Burnley game since that game against Blackburn and made a mistake serious enough to get him into trouble with the assessor. It was at Coventry last season when he moved a free kick forward ten yards after Callum Davenport had kicked the ball away. He moved it into the penalty box and we scored a sensational goal from it as Paul Cook found Glen Little who hit home from the right.

Stretton of course was a referee unaware of the rules, and what chance do we have if the referee doesn’t know them. He should not have moved the ball inside the penalty area but stopped when he got to the edge, just a couple of yards from where the offence took place.

He paid the penalty and in a six week period shortly afterwards was allocated just one 3rd Division game.

In his last two games this season there hasn’t been a single card but should he produce many cards tomorrow afternoon then it is Grimsby most at risk. He is as big a homer as they come when it gets down to dishing out the cards and this season he has issued 76 yellow and 2 red cards in 28 games. Just 22 of the 76 yellow have gone to home team players whilst the other 58 and both red cards have been given to away team players.

The two players sent off have been Lee Thorpe of Leyton Orient in a 2-1 defeat at Shrewsbury and Preston’s Mark Rankine as they went down 1-0 at Sheffield United.

Hopefully we will be able to keep his current run of no cards going for another match.