Referee: Marc Edwards
Assistant Referee: Alistair Nelson, Mark Jones
Fourth Official: Stephen Wade
Edwards is in his fifth season on the EFL roster, ascending from the National League in 2018/19. As such, there have been very few occasions where we have seen him first-hand. The last time we had him was against Blackpool on New Year’s Day. Not a lot to say about that.
Before that, he appeared in the middle against Accrington two seasons back. I said then don’t bank on a red card, as he had shown a red card in a career spanning some 125 matches on just seven occasions. What happened? He sent off their keeper, and we still lost 2-1.
One of his previous red cards, his first in the EFL, came in the final minute of our 2-0 defeat against Peterborough in Michael Appleton’s first season in charge. That was the only occasion he officiated us during 19/20, but he was later given the League Two play-off semi-final between Northampton and Cheltenham; such is his reputation.
Two seasons back, Richards caused a bit of controversy at Sincil Bank when he allowed Jorge Grant’s penalty to stand in our 2-0 win against Charlton. Lee Bowyer was incensed, but we enjoyed the three points immensely. He also officiated our 2-2 draw with Blackpool, a game which turned around our post-Christmas form, and he didn’t have a bad game. He was also in charge as we beat Bowers and Pitsea in the FA Cup. I can’t recall thinking anything negative of him in all of those games.
In terms of his stats, he’s had nine matches at our level this season, and he’s one of the more lenient refs. He’s 55/61 for fouls per game, just 18.33 compared to Lee Swabey’s 27. He’s 54/61 for fouls per tackle as well, which means a degree of consistency. Do bear in mind he’s 29/61 for yellows per game, so whilst he isn’t one for blowing the whistle, he does punish fouls when required with a yellow. Also, don’t expect a penalty – he’s only awarded one all season.
You must be logged in to post a comment.