Our 2026/27 league campaign gets underway tomorrow as we take on Oldham Athletic in Sky Bet League Two football, the officials for the fixture have been confirmed and can be found below.
Paul Howard will be the man in the middle. He will be assisted by Joe Simpson and Oliver Nolan, with Scott Jackson named as the fourth official.
Howard has been officiating since the 2016/17 season, where he started in National League North. He was promoted to the EFL in 2020 and has been a mainstay across Leagues One and Two. He has also featured in Premier League games as VAR.
He has taken charge of 242 fixtures since starting his career. Last season he oversaw 29 matches, awarding 82 yellow cards, three penalties and two straight reds.
The official has taken charge of seven previous Vale fixtures, most recently a 2-0 loss against Bradford City.
Port Vale games officiated by Paul Howard | ||
|---|---|---|
11/3/26 | League One | Port Vale 0-2 Bradford City |
6/4/24 | League One | Wigan Athletic 0-0 Port Vale |
28/11/23 | League One | Port Vale 0-1 Derby Count |
11/3/23 | League One | Fleetwood Town 1-1 Port Vale |
11/12/21 | League Two | Newport County 2-1 Port Vale |
17/8/21 | League Two | Port Vale 0-0 Carlisle United |
24/11/20 | League Two | Stevenage 2-1 Port Vale |
