Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Nottingham Post
Nottingham Post
Sport
Oliver King

Luke Williams addresses refereeing performance and importance of Notts County substitutions

Notts County boss Luke Williams has addressed the decisions made by referee Paul Johnson following their 2-1 win over Torquay at Plainmoor.

The official took centre stage with several questionable decisions for both the Magpies and the Gulls, producing nine yellow cards during the encounter.

Gary Johnson's side were lucky to finish the game with 11 men, with Ryan Hanson and Tom Lapslie both escaping second bookings after earlier fouls, but the visitors were not so fortunate, with Ruben Rodrigues seeing red after to have adjudged to have handled the ball on it's way out for a goal-kick.

READ MORE: Notts County player ratings vs Torquay: Ten man Magpies pick up valuable win

Poor decisions and officials seem to be a common occurrence during the Magpies' campaign so far, with the ten men overcoming another unconvincing performance from the man in the middle, with Williams speaking after the game on the matter.

"It seemed that what happened, in a really smart way, that Torquay made a substitution for a guy that should be off the pitch already and then another one in the first half.

"We have already seen this type of thing and the last time we suffered was against Dorking when two guys were removed in the first half that could have potentially been sent off.

"It is a clever tactic from the opposition, but I think the referee needs to be brave enough to make those big decisions during the game.

"Once the referee makes a decision not to send a guy off, if you don't make the smart move and take that player off then you deserve to have a man sent off.

"It was disappointing because I saw the referee reach for the card and then change his mind at the moment, but that is hard to accept at times because you know that the players are trying to control the game and Torquay are playing in a way of fouling us."

Before Rodrigues' sending off, Williams made two changes to see out the three points, introducing both Cedwyn Scott and Jodi Jones into the action.

The pair were instrumental in keeping the ball in the opposition half and relieving the pressure in the final moments, with the Notts chief further highlighting their importance to his side.

"They are so important and I will tell you the big reason why. Jodi is here and is a brilliant player and recognises the way our squad wants to play and we know he needs time to get up to speed.

"But when you look at Cedwyn Scott, he's ready to play and is a fantastic player and he plays from the beginning of the game and is brilliant, but then the next week he doesn't play, but that's the demand.

"When you have two strikers on the pitch and trying different combinations when you are as an incredible player as Cedwyn Scott, you have to accept that your role in the game might be to make an incredible action in the final 15 minutes of the game and he did that."

READ NEXT:

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.