Referee will apply the Laws

His last three Burnley games have been, quite thankfully, without major incident but over the years he's cost us with some of the most bizarre match deciding decisions, none more so than the incredible penalty decision at Preston in 2005. And even in pre-season he misjudged a challenge so badly he demanded the removal of Remco van der Schaaf from the pitch at Bradford.

But in league games, since his sending off of Wayne Thomas against Derby, he's done OK and had a sound enough game back at the beginning of November.

Laws is one of the most experienced Football League referees and is now in his fifteenth season and he does get one thing right, he cites George Courtney as the best referee he's seen and claims no official since has reached his standards.

This season he's refereed 33 games in which he's yellow carded 59 players and handed out red cards to four players. Of those cards, 26 yellows have gone to home team players and 33 to away team players whilst he's sent off two home players and two away players.

He will be assisted tonight by Mark Brown (East Yorkshire) and Lee Metcalfe (Lancashire) whilst Football League referee Anthony Taylor from Wythenshawe will act as fourth official. Taylor was the man in the middle when the two sides met at Bramall Lane in December.

Previous Burnley games:

Season	Opps	V	Res	Y	R	Burnley players carded
a
1997/98	Gillingham	h	0-0	5	2	Eyres(Y/R) Ford Howey Waddle
1997/98	Walsall	a	0-0	4	0	Cooke Harrison N Moore
1998/99	Stoke	h	0-2	1	0	O'Kane
1999/2000	Scunthorpe	h	1-2	1	0	.
1999/2000	Rotherham	h	2-0	0	0	.
2000/01	Sheffield Utd	h	2-0	4	0	Ball
2000/01	Watford	a	1-0	1	0	Ball
2001/02	Barnsley	h	3-3	2	0	Ball
2001/02	Sheffield Utd	a	0-3	4	0	West
2002/03	Huddersfield	a	1-0	2	0	Briscoe I Moore
2002/03	Grimsby	a	2-2	0	0	.
2002/03	Grimsby	h	4-0	0	0	.
2003/04	Crewe	h	1-0	2	0	Chaplow
2003/04	Gillingham	h	3-1	5	0	Blake
2003/04	Bradford City	a	2-1	2	0	May
2004/05	Leicester	h	0A0	0	0	.
2004/05	Preston	a	0-1	3	0	Camara Roche
2005/06	Derby	h	2-2	4	1	Branch Duff G O'Connor Thomas(R)
2005/06	Sheffield Wed	a	0-0	2	0	McCann
2006/07	Hull	a	0-2	6	0	Duff Elliott Thomas
2008/09	Norwich	h	2-0	3	0	Caldwell Gudjonsson Thompson