The referee for this weekend's FA Cup quarter-final between Watford and Crystal Palace has been named as Kevin Friend.

The game will also be the first in which VAR will be used at Vicarage Road, for which Craig Pawson will be responsible.

Friend has only officiated one Watford match this season, when he took charge of the 2-2 draw away at Everton.

Prior to that, his last match involving the Hornets came in the same fixture in May 2017, when Watford were beaten 1-0.

During the 2016/17 season, he refereed three Watford games, all of which ended in defeat, including a 3-1 home loss to Arsenal and a 2-0 win for Manchester City at the Etihad.