The man in charge of our game at Priestfield on Saturday will be . . . .
Dean Whitestone from Bedfordshire
Dean began his refereeing career in the United Counties and Southern Leagues and in 2001 reached the National List of Referees. Midway through the 2005/6 season Dean was promoted to the Referees’ List.
This will be Dean’s second game in charge of the Millers this season, the first being our game at the Kingsmeadow Stadium in October. Lyle Taylor put Wimbledon in front on fifteen minutes with a Joe Newell goal on seventy minutes gave the Millers an equaliser. But two goals from Taylor in the final five minutes of the game gave him his hat-trick and Wimbledon a three-one win. Anthonty Forde and David Ball were booked on the night.
The time before that Dean was in the middle for our game in August 2015 at Loftus Road which was named ‘Stan Bowles Day’ in tribute to the former Rangers player who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. Tjaronn Chery put QPR in front on forty-two minutes scoring a second five minutes into the second half. Charlie Austin made it three-nil but Jonson Clarke-Harris and Tom Thorpe gave the travelling Millers some hope making it three-two. But in the final minute of the net Lee Frecklington ‘brushed’ against substitute Seb Polter in the area and the hosts were awarded a penalty which Austin scored with.
Before that the Millers and Mr Whitestone met on Good Friday in the 2014/15 season at the St Andrew`s. Robert Tesche and Clayton Donaldson gave Birmingham a two-nil lead in the first half with Matt Derbyshire getting a consolation three minutes into the second half for the visitors. Dean booked two players from each side that day – Kirk Broadfoot and Craig Morgan of the Millers and City`s Jonathan Grounds and Andrew Shinnie.
The season before Dean was in the middle for two Millers games, the first in August at the New York Stadium when Shrewsbury were in town. A certain Jon Taylor put the visitors in front in the first half but twelve minutes into the second half an Alex Revell goal equalised for the Millers. Just after the hour mark the Shrews went in front for the second time with a Tom Bradshaw goal which prompted Steve Evans to bring Daniel Nardiello off the bench for Matt Tubbs and within three minutes the Millers striker had equalised again. Not long after Nardiello received a yellow card for ‘unsporting behaviour` and incensed at the end of the game he ran over to the ref and started an argument which saw him get a second yellow after the final whistle.
This was followed by a game in the May when Rotherham visited the County Ground to take on Swindon Town. The Millers got off to a flying start when Wes Thomas opened the scoring in the first minute. Wes doubled the score twenty-two minutes later with Swindon but when Massimo Luongo fell over in front of Kari Arnason in the penalty box on the hour mark Mr Whitestone pointed to the spot and with Michael Smith scoring the penalty. Adam Collin pulled off some great saves in the second half of the game with Mr Whitestone infuriating Steve Evans when he said ‘no’ in the final minute of the game when Foderingham had three lunges at Kieran Agard before pulling him down in the area with the ref being the only person in the stadium not thinking it was a penalty.
Dean has been in the middle for other Millers games n the past, the first being at the Liberty Stadium two days before Christmas in 2006. Eugen Bopp put the Millers in front eleven minutes into the second half but an Adebayo Akinfenwa goal on the stroke of full-time gave Swansea a share of the points.
In January 2008 a hat-trick from Derek Holmes at Sincil Bank saw the Millers beat Lincoln City three-one. That day Dean showed red to Shane Clarke of Lincoln City in the final minute of the game.
September 2012 saw Dean in the middle for our nil-nil draw with Barnet at Underhill when he sent Alex Revell off ten minutes from the end of the game for what he said was a ‘two-footed challenge’.
This season Dean has been in charge of thirty games showing eighty yellow cards and three red cards
Running the line at Priestfield on Saturday will be . . . .
Callum Walchester from Suffolk
and
Adrian Waters from London
The Fourth Official will be . . . .
Stephen Brown from Kent
