According to the Football League website, Howard Webb will work the middle for the final. http://www.football-league.premiumtv.co.uk/today/view/breaking_news_detail/0,,10794~384185,00.html Webb's time this year was split roughly evenly between the First, Second, and Third divisions. Recently, he worked the second leg of the Wolves/Reading Division 1 playoff and, before that, worked the Cardiff home win against Bristol City in the first leg of the Division 2 playoff. He has worked two QPR games this year, both Rangers wins: 2-0 at home against Swindon in September 2-1 away against Brentford Rangers were issued 1 yellow in the first game (to Swindon's one) and 3 yellows in the second game (to Brentford's one). The Cardiff win in the playoffs is the only time he's worked them this year. They got two cards to Bristol City's one, but won the game. His overall stats this year are 38 games, 140 yellows, and 4 reds. In '01/'02, we had 1 win and 1 draw with him, while Cardiff had 1 draw. That year, he gave out 69 yellows (5 reds) in 32 games, a much smaller number than this year. In '00/'01, he worked mostly Second and Third division games, and didn't work any for QPR or Cardiff. He issued 58 yellows and 1 red in 26 games. This appears to be the first Final he's worked, but he's done two playoffs, including a First Division game, so he must be getting high marks at the moment. All of the above, courtesy of Soccerbase.com: http://www.soccerbase.com/footballlive/?MIval=refs2&refid=434&seasonid=132
Sheesh!! Great stuff, Atouk; THANKS!! I have a friend in Chicago, who has been an R's fan since he worked in London in the early 70's. He has since hooked up with a London cabbie (lifelong R's fan), and every time he travels to London on business, Paul picks him up. On my only R's trip, I was lucky enough to hook up with BOTH of them!! Made the match all the more special. Anyway, my friend Mike reckons maybe another year in Div 2, shoring up the side, and hopefully gaining cash through some moderately successful cup runs, would benefit R's more than winning Sunday, only to get pummeled next year in 1. MIND, I am NOT trying to be sacrilegious here!! I'm simply curious as to others' reactions to this hypothesis, especially those of you (read: pretty much ALL of you) who are better versed than I am). ? oh, sod it RRRRRRRRR'SSSSSSSS!!!!!!
I think we spent this year getting our fiscal house in order. I don't think another year in the Second does us any good. With Plummer and Connolly now gone, we're left with only Langley, Carlisle, and Rose from the old regime. Nobody doubts that Langers and Superman are worth what they are getting paid -- in fact, we'll be lucky to keep those two into next year. I believe we're raising ticket prices next year no matter what (I paid 16 pounds for a Loft ticket this year, but thought I saw 20 pounds listed as the gameday price for next year on the season ticket brochure), so getting back in the First Division is much more likely to make that pay off. We've come out of administration. We've gotten rid of the overpriced salaries we had on the books. It's time for a healthier QPR to go back up.