Wrexham can take another step towards securing promotion this weekend, but they’ll be hoping the referee for the game versus Burton Albion doesn’t stand in their way.
It was a disappointing result in midweek for Wrexham, who missed the chance to extend their lead over third-placed Wycombe Wanderers by only managing a draw against lowly Cambridge United, while their promotion rivals faltered against Shrewsbury.
That 2-2 draw was marred by a last-minute winning goal that was ultimately ruled out by the referee on the night, claiming the ball had gone out of play in the build-up.
Next up for Wrexham is a home tie at the Racecourse Ground against another struggling team, with Burton Albion fighting for their lives to stay in League One.
Who is the referee for Wrexham vs Burton?
When we sit down to watch Wrexham vs Burton Albion on Saturday lunchtime, the man in the middle will be Seb Stockbridge.
He will be supported by assistant referees Karl Buckley and Conor Brown, while James Bancroft will be on fourth official duty.
Seb Stockbridge referee record
Stockbridge has taken charge of 27 games this season so far, with 16 of them coming in League One. He’s refereed a further nine in League Two, and two more in the Carabao Cup.
Throughout those games he has handed out a whopping 122 yellow cards, at an average of 4.52 bookings per match. But, Stockbridge has actually only shown two red cards this season.
| Statistics | Seb Stockbridge 2024/25 |
| Games | 27 |
| Yellow cards | 122 |
| Yellows per game | 4.52 |
| Red cards | 2 |
| Penalties awarded | 4 |
| Fouls per game | 23.33 |
| Fouls per tackle | 0.68 |
Stockbridge has awarded four penalties this term; one to Crewe Alexandra, one to Wycombe, one to Birmingham (all in 2024), and more recently, one to Fleetwood Town at the start of March.
Handballs, missed red cards, and ‘dangerous’ decisions
It’s safe to say Seb Stockbridge, like most referees, has had his fair share of criticism over the years. It’s important to remember referees are humans and make mistakes like the rest of us. But, let’s dig into the controversies he’s been at the heart of.
Back in October 2023, a 2-2 draw between Wycombe and Oxford United caused a stir, with Stockbridge awarding three penalties in the game. While Luke Leahy managed to get two goals from those incidents, he blasted the referee after the game for giving a last-minute penalty to Oxford to level the game.
Leahy was the one who gave away that last minute spot kick, and he said (via Bucks Free Press): “The game was good for 97 minutes and I can just tell that the referee was waiting to give it [a penalty].
“You could just tell he was waiting to give it and I’ve given him the opportunity to, but my leg is planted and he [Mark Harris] has kicked it. It’s one of them that we’ll learn from and we’ll go again on Tuesday, but you couldn’t speak to the referee at all.
“Even if you wanted to ask why something was given, you just couldn’t speak to him for whatever reason. He was having none of it. I think he wanted to be centre of attention and I think he was.”
Then, in November 2023, Crawley Town boss Scott Lindsey described Stockbridge as a “disgrace” after he seemingly ignored a head injury and allowed play to go on, leading to Barrow scoring the winner.
Speaking to NWE Mail at the time, Lindsey said: “I don’t even know where to begin with it, it’s a head injury, the rules say you stop play right? I have asked the players what the ref said and he said he didn’t see him. He ran over the top of him with his arms as if to say play on, it is dangerous.
“I have got to be careful because I am really angry at the referee’s performance today, it was nothing short of being a disgrace.”
More recently, Stockbridge has also not given a red card to Charlton Athletic goalkeeper Ashley Maynard-Brewer, who handled the ball outside the box against Birmingham back in February of this year.
And, he also didn’t give a red card to Wigan’s Jason Kerr, who appeared to be the last man when he brought down Barnsley’s Stephen Humphrys who was storming down on goal. Interim Barnsley boss, Conor Hourihane, said (via Wigan Today): “I thought it was a clear red.”