The Potters were leading with just five minutes to go when Attwell, at 27 the youngest Premier League official, awarded a free-kick for a foul on Vladimir Weiss after some hesitation.
Matt Taylor scored from the set-piece before snatching the winner but Higginbotham was unhappy with Attwell's performance.
"There were a couple of decisions we weren't happy with, but you've got to be careful what you say these days," Higginbotham told the Stoke Sentinel.
"There was a couple of times when he looked as though he wasn't sure.
"It wasn't so much the free-kick itself, but more the fact he looked at it for a few seconds and it looked like a case of who's shouted the loudest."
Source: Team Talk
Source: Team Talk