Not really sure what the point of this thread is, but over the last few weeks I've come to the conclusion that I may have reached the natural end of my refereeing career.
I started at 14, which will make this my 17th season, and give or take a few months here and there with injuries I've been refereeing continuously for most of that time. I did briefly referee open age, which I really didn't enjoy, but for the most part I've reffed youth (league and academy) football and despite the low moments I've generally really enjoyed it. I've been in the middle and on the line for numerous cup finals and even had the pleasure of cautioning Paul Scholes in a charity match (a personal highlight as a City fan ), but over the last couple of years I've found that I've been enjoying matches less and less.
There's a few factors at play here, but to give a snapshot It feels as though player and spectator behaviour is at an all time low and I've also experienced a real lack of support from the FA over the years (particularly after I was assaulted). The weather has also been awful this year which has meant my matches have been sporadic and that I've never felt like I've had the "rhythm" (positioning not quite right, not quite feeling match fit etc). All of this combined has just drained any enthusiasm or enjoyment for being in the middle.
I have a stressful job with long hours that limits my availability, so I can't commit the time to perhaps moving to OA and going for promotion, and equally it means that I can't travel out of the area to try some new teams/leagues, so it feels like I may have just reached a natural end.
It's never been about the money for me and the reality is that if the enjoyment has gone I need to question what I'm bothering for?
I've genuinely loved refereeing over the years, so if anyone has any suggestions as to how I could get the enjoyment back, or even stay involved in some capacity, I'd really welcome them.
I started at 14, which will make this my 17th season, and give or take a few months here and there with injuries I've been refereeing continuously for most of that time. I did briefly referee open age, which I really didn't enjoy, but for the most part I've reffed youth (league and academy) football and despite the low moments I've generally really enjoyed it. I've been in the middle and on the line for numerous cup finals and even had the pleasure of cautioning Paul Scholes in a charity match (a personal highlight as a City fan ), but over the last couple of years I've found that I've been enjoying matches less and less.
There's a few factors at play here, but to give a snapshot It feels as though player and spectator behaviour is at an all time low and I've also experienced a real lack of support from the FA over the years (particularly after I was assaulted). The weather has also been awful this year which has meant my matches have been sporadic and that I've never felt like I've had the "rhythm" (positioning not quite right, not quite feeling match fit etc). All of this combined has just drained any enthusiasm or enjoyment for being in the middle.
I have a stressful job with long hours that limits my availability, so I can't commit the time to perhaps moving to OA and going for promotion, and equally it means that I can't travel out of the area to try some new teams/leagues, so it feels like I may have just reached a natural end.
It's never been about the money for me and the reality is that if the enjoyment has gone I need to question what I'm bothering for?
I've genuinely loved refereeing over the years, so if anyone has any suggestions as to how I could get the enjoyment back, or even stay involved in some capacity, I'd really welcome them.