Referee Dean Whitestone will take charge of a league game at Spotland for the first time in over six years when Dale entertain Oldham on Saturday.

Although he refereed the pre-season friendly against Preston in July 2013, we last saw the Northamptonshire-based official at a Spotland league fixture back in April 2008 when Dale defeated Notts County 4-2 to continue their march on the League Two play-offs.

Since then Dean has refereed several Dale away games, including the crucial 2-1 win at Bristol Rovers last Easter Monday to ended a poor run of April results that threatened to derail our promotion hopes.

We also saw him at the 3-0 loss at Sheffield United in December 2011, while three months earlier Mr Whitestone was in the middle for a 2-0 defeat at Notts County. That in itself was the first time Dean had refereed Dale since December 2008 when he was in charge for the 2-1 reverse at Port Vale.

One of his most notable appointments was at Spotland for the final home game of the 2006/07 season against Hartlepool which Dale won 2-0, although three red cards, two penalties and a mass brawl kept the referee on his toes.

We also saw Dean for Dale’s 2-1 win at Grimsby in October 2007 and the 1-1 draw at Cheltenham in February 2006.

So far this season the police officer has refereed 12 games, showing 25 yellow cards and no red.

His most recent appointment was Exeter v Luton at the start of November, while on the opening day of the season he refereed Oldham’s game at Colchester.

Photo: Action Images

Rochdale Polls