Former Rangers player Matt Crooks was at the centre of controversy in the English Championship on Wednesday night, with a suspect red card proving costly in a key fixture against Middlesbrough.
Crooks left the Gers for Northampton Town in 2017 and 18 months later moved to Rotherham United, for whom he’s been a regular ever since.
The 27-year-old midfielder has been in good form this season, scoring six goals and notching three assists from 38 league appearances, while he won the Championship Fans Player of the Month award for January [Give Me Sport].
Things didn’t go according to plan for him on Wednesday night, though, and the Millers’ hopes of avoiding relegation took a big hit as a result.
In the 19th minute of a home fixture against Boro, with his side 1-0 up, Crooks was sent off following an aerial challenge on Grant Hall.
Crooks led with his arm but appeared to clash heads with his opponent rather than catch Hall with an elbow and he and his teammates were dumbfounded when referee Darren Bond produced a straight red card.
The controversial decision changed the course of the game, and the visitors soon made their man advantage count, with George Saville and Chuba Akpom scoring either side of half-time and the game finished 2-1.
After the match, Rotherham boss Paul Warne made it clear that he disagreed with the decision and vowed to appeal it [the Star].
The Yorkshire club now face an even more difficult task to avoid the drop, as they remain four points away from safety with only five fixtures remaining.
However, Wayne Rooney’s Derby County, who are in 21st, are still catchable, and they only have three games left to play.
In other news, Rangers fans have slammed the manager of a Championship club for a claim about the Old Firm clubs and the British Super League.
