The man in charge of the FA Cup 3rd Round clash between Peterborough United and Norwich City is STUART ATTWELL.
The former Premier League referee has already officiated Posh this season in the excellent 3-1 home win over Huddersfield Town. He issued three yellow cards in that match with all of them going to Posh. Ntlhe, Bostwick and McCann were the players booked while Ntlhe scored his first ever League goal after George Boyd had hit a first half brace. Adam Hammill scored a consolation goal for the Terriers.
The Nuneaton based referee last took charge of Norwich City last season. He oversaw the 1-1 away draw at Wigan at the start of the season issuing two yellow cards to each side before officiating the Canaries 2-0 defeat away at Manchester United. Danny Welbeck was the only player to receive a yellow card in that match.
Attwell was demoted to the lower Leagues earlier last year after a number of high profile mistakes!
The 30-year-old became the youngest referee, aged just 25, to officiate a Premiership match in August 2008 when he took charge of the Blackburn v Hull match. He spent just one season in the Football League before he moved up to the Premier League!!
Just a month after taking charge of his first Premier League match, he made his first big mistake when he awarded a ‘ghost’ goal in a Championship match between Watford and Reading!
Controversy has followed the Warwickshire based referee when he was accused of ‘losing control’ of a Derby v Nottingham Forest derby. In this match he disallowed two Derby goals, booked eight players and sent off Forest’s Lewis McGugan.
He also annoyed Wigan manager Roberto Martinez in April 2010, who accused the referee of lying about his reasons for sending off Gary Caldwell in April 2010.
Stoke’s Danny Higginbotham has also claimed Attwell could be too easily influenced by players?which doesn`t bode well for Posh as many teams get away with so many blatant dives to win free kicks and penalties!!
Later that year, Attwell awarded Liverpool a highly controversial Dirk Kuyt goal against Sunderland. He had awarded the Black Cats a free-kick inside their own half and Michael Turner touched the ball back to Simon Mignolet, apparently for the goalkeeper to take the set-piece but Attwell ruled the ball was active which allowed Fernando Torres to set up Dirk Kuyt to finish into an empty net!
The final straw came in December 2011 when he sent off former Bolton defender Gary Cahill for denying Tottenham’s Scott Parker a goalscoring opportunity. The offence took place near the halfway line!! Needless to say the red card was rescinded.
Attwell is determined to build up his experience and get back to that elite group of Premiership referees: ‘I have learned a great deal from my involvement in the Select Group over the last four years and I am now looking forward to building on that valuable experience.
‘I strongly believe I have a lot to offer refereeing, and I now look forward with commitment and enthusiasm to the new challenge that I am undertaking.
‘This is supported by a determination to continue my career development, and return to the Select Group as soon as possible.’
Attwell has refereed 25 matches so far this season issuing 73 yellow cards and two red cards. His last match came on New Years Day when he took charge of Rochdales home defeat by Rotherham where he issued five yellow cards. The Millers picked up three of these cards with Lee Frecklington being one of the players to receive a caution. Frecklington has since made his loan from Posh a permanent one with Posh receiving a “substantial undisclosed fee”.
Peterborough United v Norwich City
Location: London Road
Date: 5th January, 2013
Kick-off: 3:00pm
Referee
Stuart Attwell
Assistants
Andrew Garratt
Nick Hobbis
Fourth official
Stephen Martin
Follow me on Twitter: @mwl1967
Photo courtesy of www.theposhpics.co.uk.
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