Keith Stroud has been named as matchday referee for Bristol City’s Championship clash against Preston North End after a late change by the PGMOL due to an illness to original official Leigh Doughty.
Stroud had been listed as the fourth official at Ashton Gate but Doughty, who remains on the EFL website as the designated referee, has had to pull out of the clash and will be replaced, Bristol Live understands.
Hampshire-based official Stroud remains something of a pantomime villain among City fans after sending Nathan Baker off against QPR in 2018, while the Robins' record in matches he has taken charge does not make for particularly welcome reading: 30 games, eight wins, seven draws and 15 defeats.
So far this season he’s issued 50 yellow cards and two red cards in 10 matches at Championship, League One and League Two level. He had the whistle earlier in the season at Ashton Gate as the Robins were beaten 3-2 by Sunderland.
Doughty had already taken charge of a Robins match this season as he was the official who sent Mark Sykes off in the second half of City’s 2-0 win over Luton Town in August but declined to dismiss Hatters midfielder Luke Freeman.
It was a decision that led to Pearson delivering a monologue to Sky Sports News after the game in which he claimed he was considering retiring from the game due to an apparent decline in standards of refereeing.
“I’ve got to be honest with you, I thought about it last year, and I’ve thought about it again this year and that is basically to pack up being involved in the sport," Pearson said.
“And that is not because how shallow the modern game is and how some of the aspects of the modern game irritate me but the standard of officiating, as far as I’m concerned, is at an all-time low.”
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