The Men in Black - QPR v Bristol City

Fred Graham from Essex with referee Rangers as they take on Bristol City this Bank Holiday Monday.

The official was promoted to the National List of Referees in 2004 only to be demoted after one season in the Football League - his persistence enabled him to rejoin the list again in 2006.

An official that has been billed as one of the more lenient in the Football League whenever he has faced QPR he has been hard-pressed to reach for his pocket.

This season Mr Graham has dished out 37 yellow cards and two reds in 17 games, giving him a card average of 2.29 cards per game.

He will be assisted by Mr Geoff Russell (Northamptonshire) and Mr Ashley Slaughter (Sussex) - the fourth official is Mr Rob Whitton (Essex).

Refereeing Rangers

Eight years after joining the National List he took charge of his first Rangers clash as the R's hosted Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2007-08.

The fixture at home to Wolves last was hardly captured the imagination. The R's could and should have taken three points in W12 - but in the end were lucky to leave with a point after Stephen Elliott's close range miss.

Following this Iain Dowie's QPR hosted Nottingham Forest under Mr Graham's guidance, Angelo Balanta struck for Rangers following a scramble before an Ákos Buzsáky wonder-goal sealed the points for Rangers.

Lewis McGugan's delightful consolation contributed for little as Graham booked three once again in a game that was refereed well by and large.

Ipswich then came calling and when David Norris and Darryl Murphy struck for Town, Rangers supporters were evidently disappointed at what was a very poor display in the pouring rain.

Jay Simpson halved the arrears but it wasn't enough to quell the feeling of frustration in W12 after another in a succession of below-par performances.

Mr Graham & Queens Park Rangers

QPR 0-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers - 15-12-2007
Goals: None
Booked: None

QPR 2-1 Nottingham Forest - 18-10-2008
Goals: Angelo Balanta 48, Ákos Buzsáky 60; Lewis McGugan 84
Booked: Dexter Blackstock, Lee Cook; Gareth McCleary

QPR 1-2 Ipswich Town - 09-02-2010
Goals: Jay Simpson 66; David Norris 8, Darryl Murphy 38
Booked: Matt Connolly; David Norris, Jon Walters.




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