Controversy but a point for Cobblers
THERE were extraordinary scenes at Portman Road on Tuesday night as referee Darren Drysdale appeared to square up to Ipswich Town’s Alan Judge before booking him for diving in the League One game against Northampton Town.
It was the 90th minute of a game in which Northampton emerged with a useful 0-0 draw in their battle against relegation.
Judge reached a pass on the edge of the penalty area but his momentum and attempt to change direction saw him lose control of it and he fell in collision with Northampton’s Peter Kioso.
The whistle went and Judge appeared to say something before the referee had a heated exchange with him, up close, before producing a yellow card.
Drysdale was ushered away from the confrontation by Cobblers defender Lloyd Jones.
Ipswich said they would be making no official complaint but the FA have now charged Drysdale with a breach of their Rule E3, alleging his behaviour amounted to improper conduct. He has until March 4 to respond.
Ipswich manager Paul Lambert said: “I’ve texted Mike Jones (EFL head of referees) to say have a look at the footage of the head thing.
“It looks as if the referee went in there and I said to him after the game, ‘Did you put your head in my player?’ He couldn’t answer it and that’s the reason I spoke to Mike. I haven’t seen that in a long while.”
Before the end of the game, Ipswich’s Flynn Downes had been sent off for a second yellow card after apparently disagreeing with the decision to award the first for a foul.
Drysdale, no stranger to controversy, was the referee who sent off
Burton Albion’s John Joe-o’toole against Southend United in December 2019, after which O’toole had two games added to his ban for comments he made to the referee afterwards.
The events became the big talking point but Ipswich fans still had more to say about their team’s performance in a week when some of them held a protest at the club’s training ground.
It was only a little better for Northampton, who stretched their run without a goal to six matches and remain in the bottom four on goal difference.
There was a defeat on Tuesday night, too, for Rochdale, who appeared at one point to be edging away from the relegation battle but have now lost three in a row after going down 1-0 away to Blackpool.
Sullay Kaikai scored the only goal after 21 minutes and Dale can, on paper, be passed by Burton if the Brewers were to win their two games in hand.
It was better news for Bristol Rovers, who ended a 10-game run without a win by beating Portsmouth 3-1 Memorial Stadium.
It was Rovers’ first game since the sacking of manager Paul Tisdale and they fell behind to a John Marquis goal after 26 minutes.
However, they were in front by half-time with two goals from Jonah Ayunga and Luke Leahy added a 70th-minute penalty.
Rovers are now five points ahead of Burton, having played a game more, and the two sides will meet at the Pirelli Stadium on Tuesday, March 2.
In Tuesday night’s other game, Peterborough United climbed to second in the table with a 3-1 win away to Gillingham.
Posh were a goal down at halftime to John Akinde’s penalty but two goals from Jonson Clarke-harris, to take him to 19 for the season, and another from Siriki Dembele put them in control in the second half. at the