Artikelen
Soccer Refereeing. A Personal View – Jack Taylor
Outline John Keith Taylor, better known as Jack Taylor, is best known for officiating the 1974 World Cup final during which he awarded a penalty in the very first minute of play, creating World Cup history, as it was the first penalty kick ever awarded in a World Cup final. He also, famously, yellow-carded Johan […]
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Soccer Referee: A guide to fitness & technique – Clive Thomas
Outline Known as “The Book” for his strict interpretation of the laws of the game, Clive Thomas is one of the better known British referees from the 1970s and 1980s. My Dutch readers may remember him as the somewhat high-handed referee who sent off Willem van Hanegem at the 1976 European Championships or the referee […]
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Refereeing round the World – Arthur Ellis
Outline A typical example of a 1950s biography: short chapters in which the writer (assisted by Kenneth Wolstenholme, a well-known sports reporter from the time) looks back on the highs and lows of his career. Although it serves the readability of this consequently short book (195 pages only), it does mean Ellis’s account does not […]
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I’ll have a ref, thank you – by: Jan Vorstenbosch
This essay was published over two years ago (early 2013) in Dutch daily Trouw. The author is Jan Vorstenbosch, a philosopher and football expert. A researcher at the University of Utrecht, he also teaches ethics there. In 2010 he published “Voetbalgek”, his philosophical reflections on all things football. Jan reacted with great enthusiasm to my request […]
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Play to the Whistle! – Jim Wiltshire
Outline Jim Wiltshire was the referee of the 1947 FA Cup Final. This appointment marked the end of a long career on the pitches of England, which career had been broken by World War II, as was the case for many in football at the time. Wiltshire’s account is interesting in that it started in […]
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Quiet?
It’s been quiet on the book front for me. That doesn’t mean nothing has happened, though. I’ll dilate upon that in a later post. Meanwhile, two more books have come my way. They are: Ward’s Soccerpedia. The Lore and Laws of the Beautiful Game, by Andrew Ward It really is an encyclopaedia of football, discussing […]
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Referees’ Charts
Who do you turn to when you need to know about the laws of association football? Pundits and commentators on the telly? Don’t make me laugh! Of course, you can always go online (or tweet me!). But the standard reference book for the Laws of the Game is the Referees’ Chart and Players’ Guide to […]
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How to Referee
If you’re reading this, chances are you are or at some point were an active referee. Have you ever stopped to think how easy it has been for you to become a ref? Regular courses, good instructors, mentors, plenty of books available, feedback at referees’ associations… You name it. Now imagine how that was in the […]
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Interview: Fox 40
This interview first appeared in a Dutch local referees’ magazine. It is reprinted here with permission. How long have you been making whistles? Who are the founders? Ron Foxcroft, Founder & C.E.O., Fox 40 International Inc. Ron Foxcroft, the man behind the first pealess whistle, was recently named by Referee Magazine as one of […]
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Interview: Simon Topman
This is the English translation of an interview which first appeared in a Dutch local referees’ magazine, which explains references to other articles. It is reprinted here with permission. As recounted in the article about the history of the referee whistle, the first one ever to be used in an official football match, was […]
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