Town boss insists Magpies loanee Ashby had to 'react better' after seeing red

Hatters boss Jack Wilshere felt that defender Harrison Ashby will know full well he had to keep his emotions under control and ‘react better’ after being sent off in stoppage time against former side Bradford City on Saturday.

The 24-year-old, who spent six months on loan at the Bantams last term, playing eight times for the club, was facing his old team-mates for the first time since, as they certainly didn’t welcome him with open arms, particularly after the interval.

The full back, who was one of Luton’s only real attacking outlets during a disappointing second period, got something of a battering when trying to burst forward on the right flank, fouled three times in total, including being cleaned out by Antoni Sarcevic for a booking when sprinting away, and then almost sent into the advertising hoardings too as he tried to skip away from a marker.

Ashby also received a yellow himself for fouling Ibou Touray late on, before he then clashed with Corey O'Keeffe in stoppage time, the substitute taking a tumble to try and buy a free kick, although it hadn’t worked, with referee Ross Martin actually giving the hosts the throw-in.

However, the frustrated Newcastle United loanee, who was back in the side having missed Luton’s 2-1 defeat at Stevenage with a groin injury, then kicked out at his opponent while he was on the floor, Martin running over to show him a second caution which meant he had to make his way down the tunnel, the first Town player to be sent off since Liam Walsh’s dismissal against Coventry City in April 2025, although that was later rescinded on appeal.

Asked about the incident, Wilshere who himself was serving a one match ban of his own after being red carded during the 2-1 loss to Stevenage nine days earlier, said: “I’ve been there as a player and this is what I’m talking about when I say about Bradford being good at it, at not winding players up, but the way they delay the game, the way they see a game out.

"It frustrates you as a player sometimes, but we have to keep emotions under control, we have to stay calm. We have to keep going and probably a little bit of emotion added for Ashby as well, because he was at Bradford last season, but he’ll know that he’ll have to react better than that.”