Mick
The Ref Aficionado.
We have had comfortably the better of league matches with Aldershot over the years having played them 86 times, winning 35, drawing 25 and losing 27. Despite this supremacy, our recent record has been not so good. In the last 30 years we’ve played them 13 times. We’ve lost 7, won 2 and drawn 4 scoring just 12 goals (that goal count being improved significantly by our 4-1 win last time the two sides met at Roots Hall almost exactly a year ago!).
Tuesday’s man in charge will be the familiar figure of Charles Breakspear from Walton-on-Thames. He has refereed seventeen Southend matches previously and in the first two he sent off an opposing player. Sadly, we only got a defeat and a draw (and subsequent penalty shoot-out defeat) to show for our numerical advantages. The next fifteen we did somewhat better picking up six wins and four draws and a good number of cards !
He is in his twelfth season as a League referee and, for me, he is greatly over-rated, too often making the matches all about him. He has had a high card count throughout his League career and frequently headed the card count table.
Those previous matches were, firstly, our 3-1 home defeat to Morecambe in 2013/14. Their sub got a red just 7 minutes after coming on and there was a yellow apiece (Timlin for us) and in 2014/15 he presided over the JPT match at Wimbledon where unusually all four cards (3 yellows and a red) went to the home team.
His next Southend match was his unconvincing performance in 2014/15's 0-0 home draw with Burton - a yellow for Prosser and three of theirs. This match came at the beginning of that dire run of 6 hours football without a goal from either team at Roots Hall.
This was followed by 2015/16 home match against Barnsley which we won 2-1. We also won the bookings 4-2 (Bentley, White, Wordsworth and Piggott) and he gave them a penalty. Then comes his appearance, as a late and wholly inadequate replacement, at home to Crewe in the same season. This match we drew 1-1 and we smashed them on bookings 5-1 (Coker, Bolger, Wordsworth, Barnett and Worrall). He gave us not one but two penalties. Barnett missed his but Jack Payne put his away for a stoppage time equalizer.
A slightly more recent Southend match was the comfortable 3-0 win at MK Dons early 2016/17 when his performance did not attract any adverse criticism (other than his again rather haphazard measuring of defensive wall distances!). A caution for Coker and three of theirs. Next, in the same season, were the two attempts to get the Bolton match played. His performance in the eventual game was unimpressive with Ranger and a couple of theirs cautioned.
Then, in 2017/18, the 3-3 draw at Gillingham, plenty of goals but even more cards with our 4 going to Demetriou, Hendrie, Timlin and Robinson. They only managed 3. Then in the same season he refereed our 2-0 win over Oldham to his usual questionable standard. Demetriou, McLaughlin and one of theirs picked up yellows. Next, and still in 2017/18, the match at home to Walsall last March when the efforts to clear the pitch of snow were rewarded with an abject performance from the team and a 3-0 defeat, all goals to Oztumer. This was not a hard game to referee and his performance was probably the best I've seen from him. A card apiece; ours to Yearwood.
An early match in 2018/19 followed - the 1-0 home victory over Fleetwood. Standard Breakspear fare – a red card (to them), plenty of yellows and a lot of baffling and inconsistent decisions. Our yellow went to Cox. Then, a couple of months later, he refereed our 6-2 away victory over Crawley in a Cup replay. More goals than cards for once, our two yellows going to Bunn and Hyam. They got four.
Next was our home defeat against Accrington in 2019/20 which saw a red card for Ralph along with yellows for a couple of theirs. Then one of our better results, the 2-2 home draw the same season with League leaders Rotherham. Plenty of cards – Goodship for us and 5 for them. Also 2019/20, that 2-1 home victory over Lincoln in February when a late, late Elvis goal gave us the points. Plenty of yellows: Demetriou, Milligan and Phillips for us and a couple for them including Cian Bolger.
Then came the 2020/21 home defeat (1-2) by Morecambe. Yellow cards two apiece, Taylor and Demetriou for us. Finally, until now, the behind closed doors goalless draw at home to Crawley towards the end of 2020/21 when all the bookings were for us – Demetriou, Clifford and Halford.
He hasn’t refereed a non-league match since 2013. He has been injured and out for three months and this is his first game back. In his 9 matches this season, before his injury, he showed 48 yellow cards and 2 reds.
Assisting are Joe Wright from Surrey and Richard Carter from Loughton. Fourth Official is Morgan Conn, a Health and Safety worker from London who was last here a couple of months ago in the same role for the Hartlepool match.
Tuesday’s man in charge will be the familiar figure of Charles Breakspear from Walton-on-Thames. He has refereed seventeen Southend matches previously and in the first two he sent off an opposing player. Sadly, we only got a defeat and a draw (and subsequent penalty shoot-out defeat) to show for our numerical advantages. The next fifteen we did somewhat better picking up six wins and four draws and a good number of cards !
He is in his twelfth season as a League referee and, for me, he is greatly over-rated, too often making the matches all about him. He has had a high card count throughout his League career and frequently headed the card count table.
Those previous matches were, firstly, our 3-1 home defeat to Morecambe in 2013/14. Their sub got a red just 7 minutes after coming on and there was a yellow apiece (Timlin for us) and in 2014/15 he presided over the JPT match at Wimbledon where unusually all four cards (3 yellows and a red) went to the home team.
His next Southend match was his unconvincing performance in 2014/15's 0-0 home draw with Burton - a yellow for Prosser and three of theirs. This match came at the beginning of that dire run of 6 hours football without a goal from either team at Roots Hall.
This was followed by 2015/16 home match against Barnsley which we won 2-1. We also won the bookings 4-2 (Bentley, White, Wordsworth and Piggott) and he gave them a penalty. Then comes his appearance, as a late and wholly inadequate replacement, at home to Crewe in the same season. This match we drew 1-1 and we smashed them on bookings 5-1 (Coker, Bolger, Wordsworth, Barnett and Worrall). He gave us not one but two penalties. Barnett missed his but Jack Payne put his away for a stoppage time equalizer.
A slightly more recent Southend match was the comfortable 3-0 win at MK Dons early 2016/17 when his performance did not attract any adverse criticism (other than his again rather haphazard measuring of defensive wall distances!). A caution for Coker and three of theirs. Next, in the same season, were the two attempts to get the Bolton match played. His performance in the eventual game was unimpressive with Ranger and a couple of theirs cautioned.
Then, in 2017/18, the 3-3 draw at Gillingham, plenty of goals but even more cards with our 4 going to Demetriou, Hendrie, Timlin and Robinson. They only managed 3. Then in the same season he refereed our 2-0 win over Oldham to his usual questionable standard. Demetriou, McLaughlin and one of theirs picked up yellows. Next, and still in 2017/18, the match at home to Walsall last March when the efforts to clear the pitch of snow were rewarded with an abject performance from the team and a 3-0 defeat, all goals to Oztumer. This was not a hard game to referee and his performance was probably the best I've seen from him. A card apiece; ours to Yearwood.
An early match in 2018/19 followed - the 1-0 home victory over Fleetwood. Standard Breakspear fare – a red card (to them), plenty of yellows and a lot of baffling and inconsistent decisions. Our yellow went to Cox. Then, a couple of months later, he refereed our 6-2 away victory over Crawley in a Cup replay. More goals than cards for once, our two yellows going to Bunn and Hyam. They got four.
Next was our home defeat against Accrington in 2019/20 which saw a red card for Ralph along with yellows for a couple of theirs. Then one of our better results, the 2-2 home draw the same season with League leaders Rotherham. Plenty of cards – Goodship for us and 5 for them. Also 2019/20, that 2-1 home victory over Lincoln in February when a late, late Elvis goal gave us the points. Plenty of yellows: Demetriou, Milligan and Phillips for us and a couple for them including Cian Bolger.
Then came the 2020/21 home defeat (1-2) by Morecambe. Yellow cards two apiece, Taylor and Demetriou for us. Finally, until now, the behind closed doors goalless draw at home to Crawley towards the end of 2020/21 when all the bookings were for us – Demetriou, Clifford and Halford.
He hasn’t refereed a non-league match since 2013. He has been injured and out for three months and this is his first game back. In his 9 matches this season, before his injury, he showed 48 yellow cards and 2 reds.
Assisting are Joe Wright from Surrey and Richard Carter from Loughton. Fourth Official is Morgan Conn, a Health and Safety worker from London who was last here a couple of months ago in the same role for the Hartlepool match.
Last edited:
