Peter Bankes has been selected as the referee for our FA Cup fixture against Premier League side Crystal Palace this weekend.
The Merseyside official has overseen 127 games in the Championship, 34 games in the Premier League, and two games in the League Cup, with neither Pools nor Palace crossing paths with the referee.
The last five games he has presided over have had an average of 1.8 bookings for the home side and 2.0 bookings for the away side, with just one penalty awarded in that run of matches. The last red card that Bankes awarded came for Middlesbrough’s Matt Crooks in their 1-0 defeat to Reading in September 2021.
On Saturday, Bankes will be assisted by James Mainwaring, Steve Meredith, and Gavin Ward, while Phillip Knight will be the observer.
John Brooks will be the Video Assistant Referee at Selhurst Park, assisted by Natalie Aspinall. This will be Pools’ first experience with VAR.