After three QPR red cards in four games Penn arrives at Loftus Road
Thursday, 14th Oct 2010 21:31 by Clive Whittingham

Andy Penn, a referee with a history of sending off QPR players, is in charge for this weekend’s game at home to Norwich City.

Referee >>> Andy Penn (West Midlands) nine seasons on the list, has sent off three QPR players in his four appointments with us to date

Assistants >>> Richard Kendall (Bedfordshire) and David Rock (Hertfordshire)

Fourth Official >>> Charles Breakspear (Surrey)

Previously

Watford 3 QPR 1, Monday December 7 2009

The frustration was too much for Damion Stewart who launched himself into a horrendous two footed tackle on Jon Harley and was extremely lucky to escape with just a yellow card. That first card of the game was quickly followed by a second for Borrowdale after he fouled Henderson who threatened to break away on the counter attack after Rangers had wasted another corner. The free kick, 25 yards out left of centre, was touched aside for Eustace whose powerful effort bent miles away from the goal and almost troubled the corner flag. Rangers then picked up a third yellow for a wild lunge by Fitz Hall that presented Watford with another free kick that Cleverley and Cowie worked short for Hudson whose shot was blocked.

Watford: Loach 6, Hodson 6, Mariappa 7, Cathcart 6 (DeMerit 46, 7), Doyley 8, Cowie 8, Cleverley 8, Eustace 7, Harley 7 (Severin 82 -), Ellington 5 (Henderson 57, 6), Graham 5

Subs not used: Lee, Bennett, Sadler, Bryan

Goals: Doyley 43 (assisted Cowie), Cowie 56 (assisted Cleverley), Cleverley 90+4 (assisted Henderson)

QPR: Cerny 5, Ramage 6, Hall 5, Stewart 6, Borrowdale 6, Routledge 4 (Simpson 72, 5), Watson 4, Leigertwood 5 (Buzsaky 76, 4), Faurlin 7, Agyemang 6, Vine 3 (Taarabt 59, 4)

Subs not used: Taylor, Gorkss, Williams, Pellicori

Goals: Agyemang 33 (assisted Faurlin)

Bookings: Stewart (foul), Hall (foul), Borrowdale (foul)

Referee – Andy Penn (West Midlands) 8 So, so much better than he was here last year. The only mistake I can really think of was his failure to send off Damion Stewart for his horrendous tackle on Harley. Let the game flow, kept cards in his pocket except when strictly necessary – very good overall, a complete turn around.

Watford 3 QPR 0, Saturday November 22, 2008

The R’s whipped in a decent first corner of their own after three minutes, Ledesma the deliverer, but referee Andy Penn whistled for a Watford free kick in the penalty box – decisions from him in favour of the home team would become the norm as the afternoon went on.

Watford took the lead thanks to a frankly laughable decision from the match official Mr Penn. This referee has history with QPR, harshly sending off a Rangers player on both his previous meetings with us, and he did nothing to endear himself to the travelling support on Saturday with a joke of a performance, aided and abetted by two abysmal linesman, the crowning glory of which came in the twenty sixth minute. Poor defending wide right from Ramage and Ledesma allowed Doyley time to cross to the back post, Damien Delaney headed the ball straight up in the air and then as it dropped Leigertwood and Harley challenged for the ball and the referee pointed straight to the penalty spot. It was hard not to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all and the referee ignored a dozen or more identical offences in both penalty boxes over the course of the rest of the game – still he had his little moment in the spotlight and that’s all that mattered. Rangers the victims of short man syndrome here. Tommy Smith took a long run at the ball and beat Radek Cerny easily with a low shot into the bottom right hand corner as he looked.

Eight minutes later a soft free kick award from the referee for a foul by Mahon on Harley presented Williamson with a chance to strike on goal from fully 30 yards out. Mahon was booked for the challenge and then Williamson crashed the ball off the base of the post although Cerny did look to have it covered had it been a foot the other way.

To compound QPR’s poor performance and the antics of the referee – both linesmen hardly covered themselves in glory either. Three times in the first half the merry flag waver at the far end gave a QPR player offside when he was either retreating or not interfering with the play whatsoever. The one in front of the away end was just as hysterically incompetent, failing to raise the flag for a throw in when the ball was so far off the pitch a Watford player almost had to retrieve it from the empty terrace and then awarding a corner when an aimless ball down the line from Mariappa bounced three times and rolled dead without a further touch.

Ten minutes after the break Emmanuel Ledesma engaged in some antics that have become typical of his time with QPR so far. A foul on Harley by the corner flag brought a Watford free kick in a dangerous area and as the referee came across to deal with it Ledesma theatrically fell to the ground claiming some form of indiscretion from Harley. He rolled around on the deck as if he’d been knifed in the chest and received lengthy treatment from Paul Hunter before deciding he could not continue and being replaced by Daniel Parejo. Somewhere in amongst all the chaos Penn showed Ledesma a yellow card, either for the original foul or the play acting it wasn’t clear which.

Then with ten minutes left Rangers’ day was complete when Mr Penn proudly hoisted a red card aloft and dismissed Fitz Hall for a mistimed lunge on sub Will Hoskins. Hall had received lengthy treatment on what looked to be his troublesome groin injury about ten minutes before this and wasn’t moving freely at all which probably explains, while not excusing, the lateness of the hit on Hoskins and I’m not convinced this was a red card offence.

Watford: Loach 7, Mariappa 6, Ward 7, DeMerit 7, Doyley 6, McAnuff 8 (Hoskins 78, -), Williamson 8 (O'Toole 82, -), Harley 7, Jenkins 6, Priskin 7, Smith 8

Subs Not Used: Lee, Bromby, Robinson

Booked: Harley (foul)

Goals: Smith 26 (penalty), Ward 34 (assisted Harley), Williamson 45 (assisted Smith)

QPR: Cerny 5, Delaney 1, Stewart 3, Hall 3, Ramage 2, Mahon 3 (Tommasi 46, 3), Leigertwood 3, Ledesma 3 (Parejo 53, 3), Ephraim 4, Blackstock 3 (Di Carmine 61, 4), Agyemang 5

Subs Not Used: Cole, Gorkss

Sent Off: Hall (81) (foul)

Booked: Mahon (foul), Ledesma (foul/play acting), Stewart (foul)

Referee: Andy Penn (W Midlands) 2 Very poor all the way through. A silly little man with stupid facial hair and an apparently terminal dislike of QPR. The sending off looked harsh, the penalty was an absolute joke and his general handling of the game throughout left a lot to be desired. The two linesmen had to be seen to be believed. Almost as bad as QPR but not quite.

Prior to that he refereed a 1-1 draw for the R’s at Cheltenham in the Second Division in October 2001 – sending off Clarke Carlisle and showing three yellow cards. The following season in August 2003 he sent off Paul Furlong in a League Cup game at Whaddon Road but Rangers still beat Cheltenham 2-1 thanks to goals from Gareth Ainsworth and Richard Langley.

Stats

Mr Penn has been a busy boy this year, clocking up one more fixture than the QPR players so far. He has refereed 11 matches, four in the Championship, showing 25 yellows and a single red in that time (2.27 yellows a game). His average is low, but it would be miniscule if it wasn’t for a seven yellow card match between Brighton and Oldham in September and a six card haul in the League Cup tie between Swansea and Barnet in August. In the Championship he has shown four yellow cards in four matches.

Last season he also kept the cards in his pocket. He showed 63 yellows (1.85 a game) and just two reds in 34 games. On eleven occasions last season he showed no cards in a game, and he showed a single card on a further five occasions.

Other listings

Championship >>> Premiership referee Chris Foy drops down to take charge of the televised evening game between Middlesbrough and Leeds, the ever steady and consistent John Moss will need all his powers of reasonableness to deal with the noon showdown between Cardiff and Bristol City, Andy D’Urso has Derby v Preston and Rob Shoebridge who received a LFW mark of 1/10 at Newcastle last season and failed to award the infamous Palace ghost goal at Bristol City has Ipswich v Coventry.

League Two >>> Trevor Kettle, a regular sinner against QPR, has Stevenage v Burton

Tuesday >>> We have newbie referee Simon Hooper for our trip to Swansea, more on him on Monday.

Photo: Action Images

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