DAVID Flitcroft has called for professional referees to be introduced at every level of the Football League.

The Bury manager made the appeal after slamming the performance of referee Kevin Johnson in last weekend's defeat at home to Oxford.

He was critical of Johnson’s “inconsistent” display, saying he made a rod for his own back after booking Shakers centre-back Adam El-Abd in only the sixth minute.

The Somerset-based official went on to issue eight cautions in total, including a second booking for El-Abd, who will now miss Saturday's match at Mansfield.

Bury's 1-0 defeat to Oxford ended a run of four straight victories and saw them drop to sixth in the League Two table.

And Flitcroft is concerned his side’s promotion charge could be further derailed by debatable decisions from inexperienced referees as the pressure mounts in the run-in.

“I say it all the time, League Two is the breeding ground for referees to try to get themselves to the promised land – the Premier League. Until they go professional it is not going to change,” he said, arguing that the standard of officiating in the lower levels lacked the consistency in the top flight, where all referees are paid professionals.

“As the pressure comes, whether a team is going out of the league or vying for the play-offs or the top three, you really need to allocate your refs right.

“There are no gimme games, there are no dead rubber games. They have all got something riding on them.

“It’s going to be a difficult job for the referees’ association to get so many referees across those highly competitive games.”

Flitcroft believes another way to improve standards would be to allow managers of both sides to appraise the officials' performance after each match.

“With modern technology now it would be nice to beam footage from the game into the referee’s room and go in there after half an hour, have a calm debate with the assessors and have a discussion with the referee to see if we can make it better,” he added.

“As a football person we can pass our knowledge on and try to improve the system. The only way we can do that is to speak to them after you have been able to evaluate each decision, but you can’t.”

Flitcroft’s focus now turns to Mansfield, where former captain Jim McNulty is expected to deputise for El-Abd in defence.

Strikers Danny Nardiello and Hallam Hope could be set to return from injury. Nardiello, the club’s top scorer this season with 13 goals, missed the Oxford defeat with a hamstring strain, while Hope has been undergoing treatment for a hip problem.