Garner left baffled by Wright call and delivers Sunderland verdict

Ben Garner said the referee’s decision not to show a red card to Bailey Wright was a ‘turning point’ in the 1-1 draw with Sunderland.

Wright was on a yellow card early in the second half when he again brought down Brandon Hanlan as Bristol Rovers attempted a couner-attack. Referee Anthony Backhouse reached for his pocket but decided against showing a second yellow.

“I think the turning point in the second half was the foul on Brandon Hanlan by Bailey Wright,” Garner said.

“The referee gets a yellow card out of his pocket and in his hands, and for whatever reason after chatting with Bailey Wright he puts it away and changes his mind.

“That would have been a big moment in the game if they go down to 10 and we get the momentum. As it was, the momentum swung their way and they started playing really well.

“There were a couple of changes we had to make and we lost our flow in the game, but we ground it out. We are a young team and we showed our character today.”

Garner also praised Sunderland’s second-half performance, admitting that they ‘showed their quality’ in the latter stages of the contest.

“I think when you look at the players they’re bringing off the bench like Lynden Gooch and Danny Graham, they’ re top players, and I thought [Chris] Maguire for them was outstanding with the pockets he gets into and the problems he causes for teams,” Garner said.

“Sunderland were very good. They’re an outstanding team in this division and they showed their quality.”

*Jamie Vardy scored a second-half penalty double as Leicester condemned West Brom to a disappointing return to the Premier League.

After goal keeper Sam Johnstone twice came to the home side's rescue with saves to deny Harvey Barnes in the first half, new signing Timothy Castagne broke the deadlock when he nodded home a far-post cross from fellow Belgian Dennis Praet nine minutes after the restart.

Vardy, last season's Premier League top scorer, then got up to score from the spot after being dragged back by Kyle Bartley as he chased into the box to support a move that saw Johnstone deny former Baggies loanee Barnes for a third time.

The 33-year-old repeated the feat 10 minutes later after Dara O'Shea tripped James Justin.