Ref retires at 76 ... but it might not be the final whistle

One of the oldest football referees in the Province has hung up his whistle at the age of 76 ... but Ivan Parkinson has not ruled out dusting off his yellow and red cards if called upon in an emergency.
Ivan Parkinson has hung up his whistle  probably  after 51 years refereeing at schoolboy and amateur levelIvan Parkinson has hung up his whistle  probably  after 51 years refereeing at schoolboy and amateur level
Ivan Parkinson has hung up his whistle  probably  after 51 years refereeing at schoolboy and amateur level

The Belfast man has been a referee at schoolboy and amateur level for more than 50 years, during which time he once took charge of a game involving a young Norman Whiteside, and coached George Best’s brother.

He said: “I’m not sure if I’m the oldest referee in Northern Ireland, but I’m one of the oldest. The late George Fleming – a very popular referee who died a few years ago – was 78 when he finished.

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“It was the 1967/68 season I started refereeing, though because I was a teacher I had refereed some school matches before that. By my count I’ve done 51 seasons at adult level.

“I played a bit as an amateur league player. I refereed some schoolboy internationals and I took it from there – going on to get some Irish League linesman appointments and some B Division appointments.

“I was in my mid-20s then – playing and refereeing. As a player you can’t go on for ever and ever, but as a referee you can stay on a bit longer.”

He recalled the major changes for referees over the years: “When I started it was £1.50 a match. Referees are now pretty well paid at all levels. A lot of referees are doing a tremendous amount of matches each week and can do well financially out of it. My last fees were £40 plus travel costs.

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“Another big change is the improvement in changing facilities, though the new type of pitches I’m not a fan of.

“The video technology that they’ve started using is good overall but it can delay things a bit and break up the play.”

Mr Parkinson once refereed a schoolboy international which featured a young Norman Whiteside, who went on to set the record as the youngest player at a World Cup.

“He was a big, big star at schoolboy level,” he said.

As headmaster of Cregagh Primary School, Mr Parkinson also coached a certain Ian Best – brother of the late George Best: “Ian was a striker – a pretty good player, but not as good as George. In saying that I didn’t see George play at 11 so maybe I’m being unfair to Ian.”

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Mr Parkinson, who refereed his last game in the South Antrim Football League two weeks ago, added: “In the last two games I refereed I had to give two red cards. That’s unusual for me. The rest of the season I’d only given a few yellow cards. As a referee I try to let the game flow.”

The father of two, who will celebrate his 50th wedding anniversary to Inez in August, said: “I’ve more or less retired, but a lot depends on how I feel come August.

“There are weeks when the league might be short a referee, and if that’s the case, I might be tempted to do the odd match to help out.”