Taking the whistle

The FA’s Head of National Referee Development, Ian Blanchard, Regional Refereeing Manager Edward Stone and former FA Head of Refereeing John Baker delivered a pilot referee development programme for the Oceania Football Confederation in The FA’s two partner countries Fiji and the Solomon Islands in May.

Blanchard and Baker spent 10 days in the Solomon Islands facilitating two courses for referees as part of The FA’s International Development Programme, with Stone replicating the pilot in Fiji.

The first workshop focused on encouraging community workers, youth leaders and experienced referees to educate and prepare stand-in referees.

The second workshop was aimed at new and existing referees, designed to improve knowledge and understanding of the laws of the game as well as enhancing refereeing skills.

Blanchard said: “For the first time ever we introduced the participants to outside coaching, something they took to with great enthusiasm and joy.

“At the end of the fourth day, our referees officiated games involving under-12s and under-13s.

“I was really impressed with the high skill factor among the children, who tend to play there own version of futsal from an early age, as well as the progress made by the referees.

“The participants were really good to work with. They were open to new ideas and had a lot of fun learning new skills.”

Blanchard’s positive sentiments were echoed by the British High Commissioner to the Solomon Islands, Sir Richard Lyne, who said: “This visit by The FA, as part of an ongoing programme, has been a tremendous success which will reap huge rewards in the education and development of our referees.”