New Prem Ref gets Royal Appointment

Mike Jones started as a referee at the age of 15. After four years as an assistant referee he was appointed to the National List of referees in 1997/98. He was the fourth official for the 2004 Carling Cup Final and his senior refereeing appointments include 1997 Conference League Cup Final, 2005 FA Women's Cup Final, and in 2007 the Division Two Play Off Final between Bristol Rovers and Shrewsbury at Wembley.

For the 2008/09 he was included into the Select Group of referees, His first Premier League match was the 5-0 win for Wigan at Hull in August and has officiated in six Premier League matches this season. The most famous was the match between West Ham and Stoke when he sent off ex-northender Ricardo Fuller for slapping his captain. He also sent off Benni McCarthy of Blackburn against West Brom for two bookable offences.

This season he has refereed 25 matches, producing 64 yellow and 4 red cards. His last game was the FA Cup replay at Turf Moor on Tuesday between Burnley and West Brom.

His assistants on Saturday are Stephen Artis from Norfolk and Michael Bull from Essex. The fourth official is Roger East from Essex who was the referee in the 1-0 victory at Leicester last season.

Matches involving Mike Jones and Preston

01/03/08 - PNE 0 Crystal Palace 1 - (Bookings; Carter / Hill / Jones)

18/08/07 - WBA 2 PNE 0 - (Bookings; Carter / Sedgewick)

02/12/06 - Luton 2 PNE 0 - (Booking; McKenna)

14/10/06 - PNE 4 Sunderland 1 (Goals; Dichio / Alexander (pen) / Whitehead (o.g) / Whaley - Booking; Dichio)

28/01/06 - PNE 1 Crystal Palace 1 - (Goal; O'Neill)

26/11/05 - PNE 1 Watford 1 - (Goal; Davidson - Bookings; Dichio / Nowland)

10/09/05 - Millwall 1 PNE 2 - (Goals; Jones / Agyemang - Bookings; Hill / McKenna / O'Neill)

19/03/05 - Watford 0 PNE 2 - (Goals; Nugent / McKenna - Bookings; Davidson / McKenna)

27/11/04 - PNE 3 Derby 0 - (Goals; Alexander 2 (1pen) / Cresswell - Booking; McKenna)

02/03/04 - PNE 2 Reading 1 - (Goals Healy 2 - Booking; Alexander)

24/01/04 - Swansea 2 PNE 1 - (Goal; Etuhu - Booking; O'Neill)

05/04/03 - PNE 2 Coventry 2 - (Goal; Cresswell / Abbott - Booking; Lewis)

01/01/03 - Stoke 2 PNE 1 - (Goal; Abbott - Bookings; Etuhu / McKenna / Mears)

12/01/02 - Walsall 1 PNE 2 - (Goals; Anderson / Basham - Booking; Keane)

14/04/01 - PNE 1 Nottm Forest 1 - (Goal; Healy - Bookings; none)

07/08/99 - Oldham 0 PNE 1 - (Goal; Macken - Booking; Rankine)

09/01/99 - York 0 PNE 1 - (Goal; Nogan - Bookings; Harris / Murdock)

04/10/97 - PNE 2 Brentford 1 - (Goals; Ashcroft / Murdock - Bookings; none)