Tayo Edun had been warned to ‘be careful’ by Tony Mowbray moments before receiving a second yellow card.

Mowbray revealed he had also planned to replace Edun at half time, with his second yellow card coming four minutes before the break.

Making his first start since January 29, replacing Joe Rothwell after a spell out with an ankle ligament injury, Edun picked up his first yellow card in the 22nd minute and a second just before half time.

Both were for pulling back an opponent, the second coming after a poor touch saw him lose the ball, and while referee Chris Kavanagh took time to brandish the card, he did so after some deliberation and give Edun his marching orders.

It saw Rovers reduced to 10 men, with Bradley Johnson sent on to bolster the midfield before Bradley Dack was then introduced at the start of the second half.

“Football managers have to be able to trust players and maybe he tried too hard. He’s been out of the team for a long time, but he should have known better,” Mowbray said.

Asked for his verdict of the second yellow card, the Rovers boss added: “I didn’t really see it, I asked the staff what they thought.

“He came over for a drink five minutes before and I told him ‘be careful’.

“I was going to bring him off at half time because he hadn’t played for a while and he was getting fatigued and thought second half he could over-stretch.”

For Edun, he will now serve a one-match ban when Rovers return to action on Monday when they host Stoke City.

The 23-year-old was making his 12th start, and 18th Championship appearance in all for Rovers since his summer signing from Lincoln City.

He hadn’t played since being forced off in the first half of the 0-0 draw at Luton Town on January 29, but he was back in the squad for last weekend’s draw with Blackpool where he was an unused substitute.

Rovers now have the Championship’s worst disciplinary red card, with Edun the fifth player to be sent off this season. Only Derby County (6) have more than that, while no team has collected more yellow cards than Rovers’ 51.

Mowbray has been critical of the officiating standards in the Championship, last week branding them the worst he has seen in his 40 years in the game.

However, being one yellow card away from a touchline ban he has vowed to keep his emotions in check.

He was keen not to get drawn into assessing the officials’ display, with Rovers having had a goal disallowed in the first half when Ben Brereton was adjudged to have pushed Josh Knight when heading in John Buckley’s cross.

Brereton also thought he had been fouled in the lead-up to Peterborough’s equaliser, scored by Sam Szmodics, while Sam Gallagher felt he was pulled back in the first half by Frankie Kent when trying to run through on goal.

“I was trying to stay calm,” Mowbray said, stating that his frustrations with the officials had only been added to.

“There’s no point, you can shout and demand equality, but it doesn’t matter, there’s no point because you end up getting fined and missing games.

“I’m not going to be the coach who sits here and hammers referees every week, I’m not interested.

“The officials are what they are.

“You ask your team to compete, put your foot in and play as a unit that wants to show the supporters how much they care about their club, and every challenge seemed to be a foul but nothing the other way.

“He’s a Premier League referee, and good luck to him.”

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