FA make official decision ahead of Sunderland vs Stoke City

Sunderland will get their FA Cup campaign underway this weekend with a third round clash against Stoke City at the Stadium of Light on Saturday afternoon.

The historic competition has not been a happy hunting ground for the Black Cats in recent years, with the club having only progressed to the fourth round on one occasion in the past decade. This time twelve months ago, they also suffered the ignominy of being dumped out of the tournament by bitter rivals Newcastle United.

Regis Le Bris will be hoping to fare better on his first foray into FA Cup, and his side have now learnt who will be taking charge of proceedings on Wearside this weekend. Referee Elliot Bell will be the man in the middle, with Nigel Lugg and Conor Brown acting as his assistants, and Simon Mather on duty as fourth official. VAR will not be in operation.

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Bell has officiated 14 games so far this season, with eight in League Two, five in League One, and one in the Women’s Super League. His most recent outing was an EFL clash between Bradford City and Grimsby Town, during which he awarded a penalty to the Bantams in a 3-1 win.

Indeed, since the beginning of last April, Bell has given a total four penalties across 16 games, at a rate of one every four matches. So far this season, the official has dished out two red cards, alongside 58 bookings. On average, Bell hands out an average of 4.14 cautions per 90 minutes.

Over the course of their 27 outings in all competitions so far this term, Sunderland have received 57 yellow cards, and had men sent off on three occasions. For their part, Stoke have recorded 70 bookings in 30 matches, and are still yet to see red.