Meet The Ref - Latics v West Brom - Anthony Taylor

The Wigan Athletic vs West Bromwich Albion game on Saturday will be refereed by Wythenshawe official Anthony Taylor, who is a brand new Premier League whistle blower having had his first ever top flight game on the 3rd February 2010 when he took charge of Fulham`s 1-0 win over Portsmouth at Craven Cottage.

He subsequently followed that game up with his only previous Latics game, away at St. Andrews last February, when he controversial gave a penalty to Birmingham adjudging that Mario Melchiot had tripped Keith Fahey in the box when he was clearly a yard outside the box and Melchiot was clearly a yard away from Fahey, oh how we laughed.

The happy go lucky referee was born and bred in Wythenshawe and the town is famous for amongst other things the setting of the nations favourite TV couch potato family sitcom The Royle Family, let`s hope by the end of the game there isn`t any more controversial incidents and we aren`t shouting the infamous Jim Royles favourite slogan `referee my arse`


Anthony Taylor recently gave an interview to refworld.com an excerpt of which is below:


How did you get introduced into refereeing?

Having played in local football the referees course was mentioned to me one day. It was pretty obvious that I wasn't going to play at any higher level so decided to give the course a go.


What has been the highlight of your career so far?

Actually being promoted onto the National List of referees was a very proud moment for me. It is difficult to single out a particular game as they are all enjoyable but also being awarded my FA three lions badge and representing the Football League at the Dallas Cup tournament were special moments.


What is the best game you have officiated and why?

I recently refereed the FA Cup replay, Chasetown v Port Vale. The whole night just showed that anything can really happen in football. It was the biggest game in Chasetown's history, sub zero temperatures, two missed penalties and a last minute winner for the underdogs contributed to a great atmosphere. Also any derby games you are involved in have special atmospheres. Games such as Preston v Burnley and West Brom v Wolves are great to be involved in.


What are your aims as a National List Referee?

To perform to a consistently high standard and officiate at the higher profile matches. Ultimately my aim is to referee on the Premier League and the international list, but that will take a lot of hard work and time.


What skills do you think you need to become a referee?

The biggest part of being a referee is being able to deal with people in a whole array of situations. Being calm and being able to manage whatever situation is presented to you effectively is crucial. Also you obviously also need to be able to deal with comments and 'advice' offered to you at grounds, and ensure that it does not effect you.


Who has been the biggest influence in your career and why?

As my career has developed I have realised how important it is to learn from your mistakes and make adjustments to your game to ensure you do not make similar mistakes in the future. Also picking up best practice from my more experienced colleagues helps me develop, but I think as individual referees we all need our own personality to help us control a game of football.


In your opinion who is/was the best referee?

Names such as Joe Worrall and George Courtney spring to mind, as well as Pierluigi Collina and Markus Merk from the continent. Currently in this country we have many excellent referees both on the Premier and Football Leagues, so it is very difficult to single one individual out.

Card Watch

The card happy ref has a reputation for flashing the yellows and reds as is borne out this season:

Games - 13, Yellows - 50, Reds - 5

Here`s hoping for a good game from Mr Taylor



















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