Lee Bullock column

It makes no difference for me whether the officials at our games are male or female.

We’ve had Amy Fearn running the line a few times and never had any controversy as far as I can remember.

Sometimes a female can have a calming effect when you’re getting all worked up on the pitch and feel that a decision has gone against you.

You’re just about to launch into a foul-mouthed volley at the official when you see it’s a lady. That for some reason stops you in your tracks a bit and reduces some of the anger.

That’s got to be a good thing, particularly when it’s with the linesman and you’re that close to the crowd where kids can hear what’s being said.

The only thing that really matters about officials is that they get as many decisions right as they can.

I’m sure Sian Massey doesn’t want all the attention she’s had this week.

She made a great decision in the Wolves game on TV and received massive press for getting it right. From her point of view, though, she was just doing her job.

She won’t want all that praise and extra pressure simply for being female. Just like she shouldn’t get any extra stick if she gets another decision wrong at some point.

Obviously she was pulled out of our game at Crewe but I’m sure the press will all be there when she is next on duty.

There’s no Premier League managers getting sacked at the moment so this is the big story.

But referees and linesmen are a different breed anyway. They are used to shouts from the terraces. In a mainly male environment, some of that banter will be close to the line.

But as soon as I heard what Andy Gray said, it was obvious he was in big trouble. It was the stuff you hear in the pub on a Sunday afternoon, not what you want in every living room around the country.

It’s going to be very tough for us at Chesterfield this weekend. We need to “do a Rochdale”, like we say in the dressing room.

Nobody gave us a hope against the leaders last year and we put on a great show.