Know the Ref - St. Johnstone home

Last updated : 06 February 2010 By Stuart Gillespie

The match in question came just before Christmas, when we lost 1-0. We also had Michael Higdon sent off for a couple of bookings, something manager Gus MacPherson moaned about. However, it was probably the right decision. The games Mr Tumilty did last season involving us were slightly better as the home win over Hamilton in December turned out to be our last victory at Love Street. The other match was a 2-2 home draw against Falkirk, the Bairns being given a late penalty that was pretty stonewall.

2007/08 saw this official take charge of four of our games and the outcome wasn't great. Aside from a narrow win over Gretna, there is a goalless draw and  an away defeat to Kilmarnock. There was also a hammering at Ibrox, although we had Will Haining rather harshly sent off.

Mr Tumilty did two Saints games in 2006/07, one of them a home draw against Caley Thistle. The other was rather more eventful and came at Fir Park on May 2007. Trailing Motherwell by two goals, one to a stonewall penalty, goals from John Sutton and Billy Mehmet saw us level things up before Sutton fired home the goal that kept us in the SPL on an incredible afternoon. Same again on Wednesday please, although preferably in rather less dramatic circumstances!

Aside from the game against us, Mr Tumilty has done just one St. Johnstone game so far this season, a 2-2 draw against Hearts in which Martin Hardie cracked home a stoppage time free-kick for a draw. During the Saintees' title season last year he did just one match, a goalless draw against Queen of the South, while the season before he did three. St. Johnstone won two of them - against Partick Thistle and Morton - while they lost the other to Hamilton.

2006/07 saw him do three St. Johnstone games - a cup hammering of Elgin, a Scottish Cup draw with Ayr and the replay against the Honest Men, which St. Johnstone won in extra time. His first game involving the Saintees was a thrilling 3-2 win over Stranraer in April 2006, a day that could have seen us win the league had we beaten Hamilton (we lost) and St. Johnstone lost to Stranraer.

Nothing too controversial then involving Mr Tumilty. This season he abandoned a game involving Dundee United and Rangers as Tannadice had turned into a swimming pool, while he's also averaging around one red card every four games. However, he hasn't dismissed anyone in his last four - and battles of the Saints often see at least one person sent off...