The Football League has now announced the officials that will take charge of the match between Lincoln City and Cheltenham Town in League One on Saturday 30th September.
Referee: Ben Atkinson.
Assistants Referees: Darren Williams and Anthony Da Costa.
Fourth Official: Stephen Wade.
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This will be the first time that Ben Atkinson has been the man in the middle for a match involving either side, having recently been promoted to the National Group by the PGMOL (Professional Game Match Officials Limited) ahead of the start of this season.
His first-ever match as a referee in the Football League came on the opening day of this season (5th August) in League Two for the encounter between Crewe Alexandra and Mansfield Town (2-2). In this match, he showed 6 yellow cards and 1 red card, including a booking for former Cheltenham Town player Conor Thomas.
Ben Atkinson oversaw a total of 7 matches during the 2022/23 season, all of which were in the Conference. He showed 36 yellow cards and 1 red card, with 10 of his yellow cards coming in the match between Altrincham and Gateshead (0-1), in front of a crowd of 1,804 at Moss Lane.
So far this season, Atkinson has refereed 7 matches, showing 35 yellow cards and 4 red cards. 2 of the red cards came in the EFL Trophy match between Gillingham and Leyton Orient (2-1), with Brandon Cooper receiving two yellow cards and Shaqai Forde a straight red.
Sources: English Football League & Soccer Base.
Cheltenham Town (h): Newly Promoted Referee Appointed:https://t.co/BeVABaVVQL#WeAreImps #CTFC
— Vital Lincoln City (@VitalLincoln) September 29, 2023
