Other than a few friendlies in pre-season and a couple of unofficial matches in the past couple of years, I lined up to take charge of my first official match for Hucknall Rangers in what would be a tough game against their biggest rivals, Bedstead.
I didn't know if it would be easier or more difficult to referee for my own team, as I knew they would expect more decisions to go their way but I had to remain unbiased and call the game as I saw it. I'd felt in the past that I would give more to the opposition when reffing for my own sides as not to look biased but knowing the opponents were not aware that I was officiating for a team I was registered for, I felt comfortable calling every decision as I saw it, whether either side were happy with the calls or not.
This match went really well in terms of my own performance. Hucknall were beaten 3-0 and could have no complaints as they were just not strong enough to match the quality of their rivals and no-one looked at me for the result. I'd called the match as I;d saw it and there was no real decisions I had to make so there was nothing to be frustrated about. I'd hope this was to be a sign for the rest of the season, but with better results for Hucknall.
Another 3 years...!
10 years ago