Rotherham United travel to the Riverside to take on Middlesbrough on Saturday where Darren Bond from Lancashire has the whistle.
Darren was last in the middle for a Millers game in December when we visited the King Power Stadium where three second half goals saw Leicester City the winners.
Prior to this March 2023 saw him in charge when QPR were the visitors at the New York Stadium. A Jordan Hugill penalty on the quarter of an hour mark gave the hosts the lead and another goal from the Rotherham striker in the second half saw Rotherham go two up. Rangers pulled one back with a penalty of their own but a goal on the stroke of full-time from Hakeem Odoffin saw the Millers get a three-one win.
Before this Darren was last in the middle for a Millers game in April 2021 when Angus MacDonald put Rotherham in front on three minutes at home against Middlesbrough. A poor decision, we think, to send off Matt Crooks for what Mr Bond said was ‘an elbow’ on then ‘Boro player Grant Hall saw the hosts down to ten men on just eighteen minutes. The visitors soon took advantage of the extra man when George Saville equalised on the thirty-third minute and ten minutes into the second half Chuba Akpom got the winner for ‘Boro. Rotherham appealed the red card but were unsuccessful.
Previous to the ‘Boro game Darren had been the referee twice before that season the first being at the bet365 Stadium where a twenty-seven minute James McClean goal gave Stoke City the win. Angus MacDonald and Michael Smith were booked for Rotherham that day. We last met with Darren at the beginning of March at Hillsborough when the Millers went in front through a Michael Smith goal on nineteen minutes. On the sixty-sixth minute Darren showed Michael Smith a red card which Rotherham appealed straight away and it was over turned the following day with the FA ruling it had been the wrong decision. It was Darren Moore’s first game in charge at Hillsborough and he saw his side get an equaliser with eight minutes to go through an unfortunate ricochet off Matt Olosunde but in the last minute of time added on Freddie Ladapo became a Millers ‘cult’ hero by flying down the pitch skipping this way and that then smashing the ball in the net from some twenty yards out to give Rotherham all three points.
It was at Hillsborough in December 2018 that Darren was the ref four our game at Hilllsborough which saw the hosts go ahead on the stroke of half-time thanks to a Lucas Joao goal. Within a minute of the start of the second half Michael Smith locked onto a Will Vaulks ball to make it one-all and Richie Towell put the visitors ahead when he fired into the net from outside the box on the fifty-fifth minute. But nine minutes later Joao got his and the hosts second goal to give each team a point.
Two months earlier Darren was in the middle of a Millers match when we were the visitors at The Riverside Stadium for our game with Middlesbrough. There were no goals that night and the only booking was to the Millers’ Will Vaulks.
The time before that when Darren was involved in a Rotherham game was at the New York Stadium in October 2017. Scunthorpe were the visitors that Saturday afternoon which saw goals from Will Vaulks and Kieffer Moore give the hosts all three points.
He was twice in the middle for Millers games the season before. The first time was at Portman Road at the end of October when Freddie Sears opened the scoring for Ipswich on just three minutes but five minutes later the Millers were level with a goal from Danny Ward. Three minutes into the second half the Millers went in front again a goal from Ward but in the final minute of the game David McGoldrick earned a point for the Tractor Boys.
In January at the New York Stadium Ryan Taylor put visitors Oxford in front four minutes before half-time. Danny Ward equalised on fifty-one minutes but goals in the last ten minutes from Phil Edwards and Kane Hemmings sent Oxford home with all three points despite a last minute goal from Tom Adeyemi.
Darren was also in charge of a Millers game in August 2015 when the Millers were the visitors at the City Ground. Rotherham took a thirteen minute lead with a goal from Danny Collins but a goal on the stroke of half-time from Matthew Mills and another from Michail Antonio just after the hour mark gave Forest a two-one win. Richie Smallwood, Chris Maguire and Matt Derbyshire saw yellow for the Millers that afternoon.
Other times Darren was in the middle for Rotherham games was October 2012 when Plymouth Argyle were the visitors to the New York Stadium. The only goal of the game was from Kieran Agard on the seventy-third minute with Darren booking Gareth Evans of the Millers and James Lowry and Alex McDonald from Plymouth.
Boxing Day 2013 saw him in charge of the Millers who were the visitors at Valley Parade when, again, the only goal of the game was for the Millers when Haris Vuckic scored his first goal in a Millers shirt sending two and a half thousand Rotherham fans home happy.
A home game against Birmingham in November 2014 also saw Darren in the middle when a Clayton Donaldson goal just after the hour mark gave the visitors all three points. Kari Arnason and Johnson Clarke-Harris were booked for the Millers that day alongside City’s David Cotterill. A few days before that game Darren was the referee in charge of the England v Italy U19’s game at the New York Stadium.
In the eleven games he has been in charge of this season Darren has shown forty-five yellow cards and two red.
Running the line on Saturday we have Matthew Wilkes and Akil Howson with Keith Stroud acting as Fourth Official.
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