Bradford complain over referee's 'banter'

Bradford have sought the advice of the Football League and the Football Association following an altercation involving the referee Joe Ross at Luton on Saturday.

Bradford have sought the advice of the Football League and the Football Association following an altercation involving the referee Joe Ross at Luton on Saturday.

The Bantams claim that Ross taunted playmaker Dean Windass by raising four fingers to show Luton were winning 4-0 in their League One encounter. Ross is also accused of inciting trouble by continually repeating the scoreline to Windass and midfielder Steven Schumacher. Windass was shown a second yellow card for dissent and will miss the home game against Colchester on Saturday.

"Steven Schumacher got booked near the end and because he now has five yellow cards [he will also miss the Colchester game] he went over to have a word with the referee," Windass explained. "I saw the referee start saying, '4-0, 4-0, 4-0, get your defending sorted out', so I went over to ask whether he was taking the piss. He carried on winding me up then showed me a second yellow and then a red card. The referee reckoned I used the 'f-word', but I swear on my kid's life I didn't do anything of the sort."

The London official confirmed on a national radio station over the weekend that he did raise four fingers at Windass but insisted he was merely indulging in "banter" with Windass.

Bradford have lodged an official complaint to the Football League, who have asked Ross to file a full report on the game.