A series of interivews by FAtv with Howard Webb. I made an overview for you with all six clips. Enjoy.
Howard Webb on FA tv screenshot.
Part 1: The World Wide Webb. “When I got to about 17, my dad said, ‘clearly Howard, you’re not going to make it as a footballer. Have you thought about becoming a ref?'”, says Webb.
Howard Webb recalls the the ‘amazing’ finish of last Premier League season in part 2. “I was lucky enough to be involved in the final day up at Sunderland, when they played Manchester United. And of course at the same time Manchester City were playing Queens Park Rangers.”
In part 3 Howard Webb talks about excitement in the Premier League. At least, that’s what FAtv tells us. It doens’t work on my computer, but let me know if it does on yours.
Howard Webb looks back to a wonderful 2010 season in part 4. “There are 23 little lads. (…) One little lad must be really disappointed, because he was told to be the referee’s mascot, but I held his hand anyway.”
In part 5 “Webb’s preparation” the English top referee talks about the time of the appointment at 3pm on Monday until matchday. “Before the game I’m okay, afterwards it depends how it’s gone.”
In part six (“Howard’s way”) Howard Webb talks about being involved in (high level) football. “The professional game has a big responsibility – the match officials, but the players as well – in setting the good example.”
Referee Howard Webb stresses that reaching the top is not just smooth progress for future Premier League referees. “Ups and downs are all part of the journey, and that ‘bouncing back’ from disappointments, or mistakes, is really important, as long as we learn from them.”
That says Howard Webb in an interview with Dutch Referee Blog. The top referee from England is speaking on ‘Belgian Referee Day’ for a group of young referees on Thursday evening in Brussels.
Howard Webb on FA tv screenshot.
Howard Webb: “I’m looking forward to visiting Brussels, and to meeting up with some really good friends from the world of Belgian refereeing. I’m also looking forward to having the opportunity to speak with some young Belgian referees and sharing with them some of my experiences. My presentation to them will focus on the passion, self-believe, perseverance and courage that individuals need to make it to the top. It will also highlight the importance of teamwork, thorough preparation (mentally and physically), and the importance of setting yourself apart from your competitors – refereeing in 2012 is competitive.”
The World Cup final match official says that high level refereeing is also demanding. “If you’re serious about making it to the top, you’ll need to make personal sacrifice.” But referees do also need to keep in mind that they are not the most important persons on the field, says Webb. “Referees are an important part of the game, but not of course the most important. The players are the stars, and the ones who make the game, but referees play a vital role in protecting the players and protecting the image of the game. We certainly need to encourage the next generation of referees, and I look forward to meeting the next generation in Belgium.”
Likes for referees
The Belgian FA will start a campain Thursday called ‘I like referees’. The KBVB want to give the message that there’s no football without referees. The number of likes will be announced at the start of the match between Standard Luik and Club Brugge on the 21st matchday in the Jupiler Proleague.
The two hundred young referees from Belgium will also get a course in doing heart massage (CPR) and get a speech by Werner Helsen, Uefa’s fysical coach for match officials and researcher at the university of Leuven.
‘Referees in the media’ will be published at the beginning of the week on the Dutch Referee Blog and provides remarkable or interesting quotes and links to articles worth reading.
Every boy dreams of walking onto the hallowed turf of Hampden and I have now had the great privilege and honour of fulfilling this dream.
Scottish Assistant Referee Charlie Smith blogs about his experiences as cup final AR. He blogs about the week before the final from the moment he heard hewould be there.
“That’s absolutely ludicrous, trying to protect the poor performances of the officials they supply us. It’s a joke.”
Mark Hughes laughs at the British FA because it released a statement that it is in favour of the use of technology when the match QPR – Bolton wasn’t even finished. During the match Martin Atkinson and his AR missed a clear goal.
“Webb and his officials should be commended on their handling of Muamba incident.”
European referee boss Pierluigi Collina on Uefa.com:
“The 12 are all referees from the elite group, so they are the top referees in Europe. They have all refereed UEFA Champions League matches during the past two seasons. What they can guarantee are two main elements – quality and experience. And only one referee, Howard Webb, was at UEFA EURO 2008. So there has been significant turnover.”
Cüneyt Çakır from Turkey was appointed after a lapse of sixteen years without a Turkish referee at a European Championship. The Turkish FA the selection of Çakır a “historic achievement“.
“I am extremely proud, happy and grateful to be one of the twelve referees who will go to the European Championship finals and can enjoy this tournament. I want to send a big gratitude to everyone in Swedish football: from refereeing colleagues and observers to the players and coaches who all in different way have developed me as a soccer referee.”
Bjorn Kuipers was pretty happy he got called personally by Pierluigi Collina to tell him the good news. “A very nice conversation.” Watch the interview Dutch media had with the referee from The Netherlands:
Stéphane Lannoy from France got much support from his national referee chief Marc Batta.
“This is clearly a confirmation of the skills of Stéphane, you do not qualify for a World (2010) and a European Championship without proof of quality. But after enjoying this appointment, Stéphane will have to continue to work hard to prepare for this next stage.”
Pedro Proença from Portugal was selected instead of fellow countryman Olegario Benquerenca. Referee boss Vítor Pereira thinks Portugese referees are all good quality: “This appointment seems to be a reflection of the overall quality of the Portuguese arbitrators and arbitration, their commitment and dedication to refereeing.”
“Wolfgang Stark to the Elite of European referees. He has represented the German referees excellently at the World Cup in South-Africa. The nomination for the EC is a confirmation of his constant performance in latest years.”
Scottish FA’s latest news is about Renfrewshire referees who show their respect for veterans. Hope for them they didn’t miss Craig Thomson appointment for Euro 2012. UPDATE: John Fleming, Scottish referee boss is delighted: “Firstly, I am absolutely delighted for Craig. He is a tremendously hard-working referee and this is great news for all referees in this country.”
“For me, the choice of UEFA and the possibility of being in the Euro Ukraine and Poland is a very special emotion and above all, a dream come true.”
Howard Webb completes the list of twelve. A picture of him got uploaded on Uefa.com long before the list was online, but until the final list was published there was still some doubt among British people on Twitter wether Martin Atkinson would be chosen from the UK.
UPDATE: British FA congratulates mr. Webb with some words of David Elleray, Chairman of The FA’s Referees Committee: “We are delighted that following the Champions League Final and World Cup Final appointments, Howard has once again been appointed to a major international tournament.”
“I’ll come down when I can. I’d love to be involved in the first game, a pre-season friendly. That would be magnificent for me te be involved in that”, says referee Howard Webb about Rotherham United, his favourite football club, which is building a new stadium at the moment.
The Belgian FA will start a campain Thursday called ‘I like referees’. The KBVB want to give the message that there’s no football without referees. The number of likes will be announced at the start of the match between Standard Luik and Club Brugge on the 