Blackburn Rovers have received a boost ahead of this Friday’s Championship clash against Preston North End after successfully appealing defender Scott Wharton’s dismissal against Norwich City.
The former Lincoln City loanee has found himself on the fringes of the Rovers squad this season, but has seized his opportunity following injuries to Dom Hyam and Hayden Carter. Manager Jon Dahl Tomasson praised the 26-year-old following his introduction in the 2-1 win over Millwall last month, saying;
“Scott has been waiting on his chance.
“It’s difficult to sit on the bench, but we’ve kept Scott up to speed with a lot of internal games, so when the chance came he was able to perform and I think he did really well.”
With the ongoing injury problems at Ewood Park, Wharton retained his place against the Canaries this past weekend but was dismissed early in the second half when he was adjudged to have brought down attacker Onel Hernandez when through on goal. However, replays showed that he won the ball and Tomasson said in the aftermath that he thought the decision was soft and the club were considering an appeal.
The Lancashire side subsequently decided to follow up on the incident and they have learned this evening that the decision has been reversed. Posting on social media, the FA Spokesperson said;
“Scott Wharton will be available for Blackburn Rovers’ next fixture after a successful claim of wrongful dismissal.
“The defender was sent off for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity during the EFL Championship fixture against Norwich City on Sunday 5 November.”
— FA Spokesperson (@FAspokesperson) November 7, 2023
Wharton is now free to feature in Blackburn’s Championship clash for Preston North End on Friday night, their final fixture before the upcoming international break.
Writer’s View
This is the outcome that Blackburn expected and one that will be welcomed by Jon Dahl Tomasson. His side are in excellent form at the moment, moving up to 10th in the table after sitting on the fringes of the relegation places just over a month ago.
The injury concerns will begin to ease in the next few weeks, but Wharton will be hoping that he will have done enough to impress the boss and retain his place following the next round of Euro 2024 qualifiers.
Head of Writing
