Darlington defender Stuart Whitehead has slammed referee Paul Danson after his sending off at Torquay, writes Lee Hall.

The former Carlisle man was given his marching orders after just half an hour of Saturday's 3-1 defeat after he was adjudged to have brought down Gulls striker Martin Gritton in the box.

However, Whitehead maintains that no contact had been made between the pair and that Gritton actually tricked his way into winning a penalty.

"The referee was about 30 yards away and he can't even see what's going on from there," said Whitehead.

"The linesman was right on it and he didn't give anything because I asked him.

"The ref blew his whistle and we all actually thought he'd given it our way. We couldn't believe he awarded a penalty."

While Whitehead remains adamant he did no wrong he believes the referee had no choice but to send him off for a professional foul with Gritton through on goal.

"I suppose if he gives a penalty then he's got to send me off which he did," said Whitehead.

"I know it wasn't penalty but I feel as if I've let the side down.

"I tried speaking to the ref after the game and he said I was denying a goalscoring opportunity.

"There wasn't any contact between us. It was embarrassing the way he went down. We were just running side by side for the ball and he's just went down."

Whitehead, who joined Quakers on a free transfer in October, paid tribute to his teammates after they were forced to play for the remaining hour of the game with ten men. "I thought we played really well in the second half even with ten men and I think we had the better chances," said Whitehead.

"The lads did well but it's hard to get back into a game when you're 3-1 down, especially with ten men.

"The lads have did themselves credit today and what we need to do now is build."

Read more about the Quakers here.