FA’s Head of Refereeing Neale Barry: The whistle bug never leaves you

THE Football Association and The Non-League Paper have teamed up to bring you a series of exclusive columns and features. Here, the FA’s Head of Refereeing, Neale Barry, reveals the moment he first took the whistle and the love affair that followed.

THEY say football captures you from a very young age. I can pin-point the exact moment refereeing entered my life and it’s never left me since.

My father ran a local football team in Scunthorpe and my brother used to turn out for them. Now and again I would go along and watch to give the family some moral support, I was too young to actually get the boots on.

There I was standing by the side of the pitch one afternoon and the referee – a lovely guy called Fred Hardaker – was in charge of the game. He walked over to me and placed a flag in my hand. He told me when to raise it and when not to raise it.

I was 12 years old, and I had been asked to essentially officiate. Talk about being chucked in at the deep end!

Two years later, I took my refereeing exam and I started my journey, and I’m so glad I did. It’s fair to say Fred Hardaker was responsible for all my future mistakes!

Refereeing was in my blood ever since. It was my pathway to the Premier League and since starting in the Scunthorpe & District League I couldn’t escape it.

Insight

It’s a running joke and it’s often asked ‘who would you want to be a referee?’ – I would like to offer a bit of an insight into the thought process about the men in the middle and why they decide it’s for them.

For many, you can liken it to the ambitions of young footballers. They see the bright lights of Wembley, of Old Trafford or at Anfield, and they want to achieve the ultimate goal and walk out at places such as that, alongside the famous faces we all see on the TV and in newspapers every day.

They see it as an exciting career path; they want to make it to the top. It almost becomes an obsession to climb the ladder. It’s absolutely the same as a footballer wanting to work his way through the leagues and one day, if he’s good enough, then the top level may come. That chance may arrive if you work hard enough at it.

Opportunity

We have a very clear promotion pathway and to some, that’s a very big attraction. You certainly do not become a referee to become rich or to become popular!

It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, that’s for sure, but now referees in the Championship are full-time professionals and are seeing this as a career opportunity. But refereeing is not just for the young.

In fact, we have promoted an official to the Football League list who is aged 52. There’s no doubt about it, referees in the main don’t do it for the money.

It’s about commitment, enthusiasm and giving something back, but because of the ‘no-age’ policy which exists, some do see it as a chance to take their life in a different direction.

Refereeing can be a great career, I owe my life to it and if you’re good enough, you’re old enough and if you’re good enough, age will not hold you back. Once refereeing takes a hold of you, it’s very difficult to get escape it.