Referees are very often in the spotlight, so I thought it was time to spend some time with one of Cumbria’s leading officials.
Scott Taylor was told me had the right communication skills and personality to make a referee, so what has life been like since taking the plunge 22 years ago?
Just to start with Scott can you tell me about your football background and what your playing career entailed?
I grew up on the Hampshire/Wiltshire border on the edge of Salisbury Plain. I played a bit at school, firstly as a goalkeeper in my junior team and early years at secondary school, then played as a centre-back in my final years.
In one school game I scored two own goals, the first a firm back pass that went through the keeper’s legs and the other a bullet header in the wrong net!!
When I went to the local Sixth Form College I starred upfront and bagged a few goals. Apart from playing at school the only other team I played for was a local U15 side for a season and received the Most Improved Player Award at the end of season bash, which was presented to me by Arsenal’s Perry Groves.
Like most 16 year olds in my village I turned out for the men’s Sunday morning pub team each week, playing mainly on the right-side of midfield.
It was good experience and at times a bit of an education for a young lad plus an early introduction for me into the world of grassroots football.
Actually, it gave me a lot of self-confidence as when I went away to University I immediately asked around the local pubs and found myself another side in Nottingham to play for whilst away from home.
During that time, and on the back of Euro 96, I took up my coaching badge with Nottinghamshire FA.
In my earlier 20s I was doing a bit coaching for both Nottingham Forest and Notts County community centres, Player-Manager of a pub side on a Sunday, assistant coach at Notts County Ladies, and 2nd Team Captain of Basford Utd on a Saturday!!!
When did you decide you wanted to concentrate on refereeing and why?
It was the year 2001, in the February, that I signed up for the FA Basic Referee Course as it was called back then.
I had moved down to Leicester and was player-manager of my work’s Sunday morning team.
I’d stopped playing Saturday football and was 27 and getting the odd knock and my ankles weren’t great due to training on sand-based Astro pitches.
My assistant manager had broken his leg in the September before and it was a bad break and he wasn’t healing.
I was getting married in May and got scared that I too might break my leg leading up to it. I didn’t want to ruin the big day for my wife and miss out on the three-week honeymoon we’d planned in Thailand.
So I retired from playing at the start of 2001 and just managed the team from the side-lines.
One day, whilst inspecting a frozen pitch with a local referee, he said to me he felt I would make a good referee.
I asked him why and he said I was a good communicator and had a personality. I thanked him but told him I didn’t know how to go about being one.
He said there was a course coming up at the County FA next week and that he would put my name down. The next day, true to his word, he called me and told me he had booked me on and gave me the course details. I turned up, loved it, and have never looked back!!
What level have you reached now Scott and what’s the biggest games you have officiated in?
So some 22 seasons on I am now a specialist Assistant Referee who operates at Step 1 level. This basically means I don’t referee anymore for The FA and just do lines (or the odd 4th Official) on the National League Premier, Women’s Super League, and Premier League 2.
Technically I am still classed as a Level 3 Match Official. The levels start at Level 9 (Trainee) and go up to Level 1 (National List) and beyond when you consider Select Group (SG2) are refs in the EFL Championship and Select Group 1 (SG1) are those who operate in the Premier League (and FIFA).
Of course, I can and do still referee locally, although I try and give others the opportunity in Cumberland ahead of myself.
However, with the shortage of registered referees that we find ourselves in that often means I can be seen with a whistle in hand instead of a flag!!
When I’m asked this question about biggest game it is always difficult to quantify an answer that will resonate with people.
For instance, I have been privileged to have twice refereed the Senior County Cup Final (aka Fred Conway Cumberland Cup). I’ve also been Assistant Referee on it three times and 4th Official once!!
That said, my appointment by The FA to be an Assistant Referee on the FA Vase Semi Final in 2020 is right up there with being one of my biggest games.
Likewise, my appointment to the Women’s League Cup Semi Final between Man City Ladies v Arsenal Ladies in 2016 ranks highly too.
Last season I did a game between Wrexham v Altrincham with a crowd of 10,000 and back in July, just before the 22/23 season started, I did a friendly between Bolton Wanderers v Huddersfield Town.
You are the Referees Development Officer for Cumberland FA. How did that come about and what does it entail?
I’d previously held the County Training Officer role for a number of years, training new referees and supporting the CFA with refereeing related issues.
It was voluntary until The FA came up with funding nationally for County FA RDO posts around 2008.
Right from the creation of the role it was a job that I had always wanted to do but I was a secondary school teacher, and it was a part-time post.
Then the position wasn’t vacant for a long while and so I concentrated on my teaching career and supported the previous incumbent from the outside, supporting Cumberland referees through mentoring and coaching purely as a volunteer.
When the post came up a second time I jumped at the chance, leaving my full-time teaching job after doing it for 16 years!!
The role is still part-time and I work two days in the CFA Office, managing a referee workforce of around 200 referees.
I love my job and I’m very thankful to the Cumberland FA as they allow me to have the flexibility I need to continue officiating at the level I do, often doing mid-afternoon games at short notice in the Premier League 2.
How are we faring as a county for referees and have we some promising officials coming through?
As I eluded to above, we have approximately 200 registered referees in Cumberland. About 43 per cent are U18 and around 12 per cent are female.
We have a County FA CORE Group that nurtures referees with potential, and some like young Matthew Rogerson have risen through the ranks over the past few seasons. Another young promising match official is Cameron Sealby. He has a bright future in refereeing if he continues to seek the support on offer to aid his development.
Georgia Vyse is another referee who is grasping the opportunities and is likely to go far in the game, particularly on the Women’s Pathway.
She has done extremely well this season to have already gained two promotions and is seeking a third before the end of May!!
Generally how do you think football in the county is faring – struggling to booming or in between?
I think football is struggling a little with the cost-of-living crisis. The impact this is having financially on clubs at grassroots level is not too hard to see.
Our referees have been affected as they are spending more money on fuel travelling to games locally, just as teams have had to do, spending more money hiring transport or paying for pitches. Players will naturally also fill the pinch filling up their cars and paying subs etc.
There has been a fair bit made recently nationally about abuse to referees. How have you found that on your travels, and what is it like in Cumbria?
Speaking personally I have not had much of an issue, certainly locally here in Cumberland. I think it helps that I’m fairly well-known as a match official across the County FA and also one who operates at a high level in the game.
It happens, football is an emotive sport, but there can be no excuse for a parent, spectator or coach to shout and swear from the side-lines at an U18 referee on a grassroots game of football.
Unfortunately, there seems to be at times a win at all cost mentality at youth games instead of just allowing the children to play.
Often it is parents (not coaches) who provide the pressure and can’t control their emotions. I really wish more would show respect to the ref and undertake the free online training the FA provides. It is called Safeguarding Awareness for Parents and Carers and only takes 30 minutes!!
The success of the Lionesses saw an upsurge in women’s and girls football. Was there a similar impact for female referees in the county?
Yes there has been an upsurge in female referees over the past year or two. It might be down to the success of the Lionesses, it might also be down to the fact that Women’s football is shown more or terrestrial television more and more these days and that more female referees are officiating the games on show.
I would also say that in Cumberland the increase is down to the fact that more female referees (particularly young girls) are out there refereeing our female youth league games, and because the environment is safe and enjoyable, the image is a positive one and so attracting others to take up the whistle.
It’s not hard to correlate. The better the experience the more interest it will generate!!
Anyone wishing to do a referee course in Cumberland can check out our website bookings page for our upcoming Referee Courses where you’ll find details of the Whitehaven course being held in April.
As an active referee what are your personal ambitions in the sport?
When I started out as a 27-year-old referee I set myself a goal of one-day reaching the Football League.
At the time I thought that would be as a Referee not as an Assistant Referee – as no one sets off into refereeing just to be a linesman!!
As a Step 1 Assistant Referee I am one promotion away to achieving my dream.
Other goals I’ve set myself are officiating at Wembley and gaining a Three Lions FA badge for doing a recognised FA appointed final.
Have you any particular referee in the game that you admire or model yourself on?
I admire all referees as it really is a tough job to perform. But over the years I have admired the likes of David Ellery, Graham Poll, Howard Webb, and of course Pierluigi Collina.
Currently I think Michael Oliver and Anthony Taylor are amongst the best referees in the world and I hope they both continue to be excellent role models to inspire the next generation of young referees coming through.
