Newcastle supporters are worried that Robert Jones being selected to referee their match against Brighton could hinder Eddie Howe’s side.
The Magpies host Brighton at St James’ Park on Thursday in what is a crucial game in the Premier League. Newcastle are currently third in the table, level on points with Manchester United and a point ahead of Liverpool, who have played a game more, in fifth.
Howe’s side drew 2-2 with relegation-threatened Leeds on the weekend after being beaten 2-0 by Arsenal and desperately need a win to re-establish their gap on Liverpool, who have won seven games in succession to turn the screw. Newcastle fans appear to be worried going into the tough test against Brighton, who thrashed Arsenal 3-0 on Sunday.
The appointment of Jones as referee has been highlighted on social media because he is from the Merseyside area and is a member of the Wirral FA. Jones will officiate the match with the help of linesmen Ian Hussin and Wade Smith, with Thomas Bramall as the fourth official and Jarred Gillettt as VAR.
“Nah, this isn't on,” one fan tweeted. “I'm sure the club has it all in hand but there's no way a game of this magnitude should be going ahead with a Scouse ref in charge. He may not even support Liverpool but there's always a chance that his friends/family members do.”
“Thursday just got that little bit more difficult,” another added. “Rob Jones is from Merseyside, ref'd 28 games this season, with 0 of them involving Liverpool or Everton... yet is allowed to ref us in a game that Liverpool badly need us to lose,” wrote another.
HAVE YOUR SAY! Are Newcastle fans overreacting? Comment below.
There is no suggestion that Jones is a supporter of Liverpool. He has never officiated a Liverpool or Everton match since being promoted to the Premier League for the 2020/21 season in order to avoid any potential conflicts of interest.
Jones has overseen matches involving 17 Premier League sides this season, with Liverpool, Everton and Manchester United the only teams he hasn’t refereed.
Some Newcastle fans are much more level-headed about the situation. Jones has refereed the Magpies twice so far this season and both games have ended in wins for Howe’s side, who beat Chelsea and Fulham 1-0 at St James’ Park.
“Shouldn’t worry about the referee if we do our job we shouldn’t need to worry about the referees…” one fan wrote. Another added: “We can't rely on the ref for us to win, we just need to play well enough to win without being robbed anywhere”.
Others pointed out that Newcastle-supporting referee Michael Oliver has refereed five Liverpool matches this season. Referees are required to tell the PGMOL about any football allegiances they have and efforts are taken to ensure they don’t officiate matches where any suggestion of bias can be made.
