Isle of Man Football Association and IoM Referees’ Society welcomed professional referee Peter Bankes to the island last week.

Bankes is a Select 2 Group referee, which is a panel of English officials who primarily oversee English Championship matches. He visited the island last Thursday to present a night of instruction for local officials at St George’s AFC’s Glencrutchery Road clubhouse, followed by a question and answer session.

An excellent evening was had by all and organisers wish to thank John Higginbotham, St Georges and Adrian Higgins of Specsavers, the IoM Referees’ Society sponsor.

After the visit, Bankes refereed the Championship match between Sheffield Wednesday versus Wigan at Hillsborough on Saturday, which the Owls won 1-0.

The English official was full of praise and had a message for the Manx referees: ’The meeting was one of the best I’ve attended in terms of interaction and participation by those who attended.

’I wish you all continued success in what you do and I hope I have the opportunity of coming across again at some point soon.’