54 Essex football match officials have been rewarded for their progressive approach and commitment by being elevated in the latest round of referee promotions.

Following a Promotions Panel Meeting at the Essex County FA, a list has been shared detailing the referees who have been moved up thanks to high levels of development and their dedication to improving standards. The Promotions Panel consisted of current and former referees, working with information gathered by Referee Observers.

Development Officer Lukas Wood, who works alongside George Lowe in the County FA’s Referees Department, paid tribute to the successful candidates, commenting: “There are a lot of very talented referees in Essex who operate to a high standard across the professional and grassroots game. We’d like to congratulate those who have achieved success in 2019/20.”

“When examining a referee who is aiming to progress, there are a few traits we look for. These include confidence, a willingness to learn and take on development advice, commitment and a desire to go that extra mile. They play their part in creating an environment which players enjoy playing in and spectators want to watch through their management of the game.”

“Many of these match officials go on to do Essex proud both regionally and nationally. We're proud of the number of referees who progress from within the FA and Essex County FA CORE [Centre of Refereeing Excellence] programmes, plus it’s always great to see individuals from Essex being appointed to matches in FA competitions, right through to the later stages.”

He also wished to thank the wider refereeing network, who have also contributed towards the success of the promotion scheme: "There are many people to thank who have supported our Referees Department, and the referees themselves, with achieving promotion. Our FA Tutors have supported in the delivery of the Promotion Seminars.”

“They’ve prepared the referees on what an observer is looking for from an individual during a game. Our Observers have been going out on midweek evenings, Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings and afternoons to observe each and every one of the referees and provided them with advice on how to develop going forward.”

Find out more about the referee promotion process in Essex, or how to become a match official, in the 'Referees' menu above. Information is also regularly shared on Twitter @EssexCountyFA and @EssexReferees and by searching for ‘EssexFootball’ on Facebook.

Referees Nominated to The FA to be Promoted to Level 4 - Supply League Referee: Lanray Alapafujah (Barking & Dagenham), Gavin Bailey (Barking & Dagenham), Daniel Baines (Southend-on-Sea), Anthony Bickley (Chelmsford), Andrew Crossley (Havering), Callum Dorling (Harlow), Benjamin Hughes-Day (Tendring), Samuel Laidler (Chelmsford), Jack Luckman (Colchester), Tolu Sangowawa (Waltham Forest), Luke Scottow (Southend-on-Sea), Brian Taylor (Brentwood), Nicholas Vermaat (Brentwood), Abdul Wahid (Newham), Luke Woolf (Rochford).

Referees Promoted to Level 5 - Senior County Referee: George Barker (Havering), Philip Clarke (Maldon), Alex Greenacre (Braintree), Aaron Mills (Havering), Matthew Pointer (Castle Point), Amy Purser (Braintree), Robert Reddy (Brentwood), Daniel Ripton (Southend-on-Sea), Joseph Sach (Havering), Steven Seago (Thurrock), Edward Smith (Basildon), Luke Smith (Braintree), Robert Smith (Uttlesford), Billy Stevens (Basildon), Joseph Turnpenny (Basildon), Joseph Wilby (Basildon).

Referees Promoted to Level 6 - County Referee: Adeolu Adeyemi (Chelmsford), Ryan Anderson (Havering), Royan Campbell (Redbridge), Daniel Charlwood (Chelmsford), Connor Cornell (Southend-on-Sea), Sami Dawood (Uttlesford), Samuel Deal (Braintree), Darrel Drake (Basildon), Tom McKenna (Colchester), Glenn Michaels (Southend-on-Sea), Nyasha Mukachana (Harlow), Andrew Owen (Thurrock), James Perry (Southend-on-Sea), Francis Rabbles (Waltham Forest), Matthew Simson (Rochford), David Sinclair (Braintree), Benjamin Smith (Tendring), Nathan Tansley (Colchester), Ahmad Turan (Newham), Andrew Wheaton (Uttlesford), Yaron Woolf (Redbridge).

Referees Nominated to The FA to be Promoted to Level 2W: Lee Markwick (Thurrock).

Referees Promoted to Level 3W: Katie Dorling (Harlow).