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Sunny Gill: Following in my father’s footsteps

ANOTHER WEEKEND goes by where referees are just as much part of the headlines as strikers hitting the winning goal and goalkeepers making a brilliant save. Many would steer clear of a career which puts you in the spotlight every time you get on the pitch and one which almost guarantees you will get stick from players, managers and supporters.

Being a referee at any level, without stating the obvious, is definitely not an easy job. At the top level, your every decision is dissected and analysed by countless camera angles and experts in cosy studios. If you’re lucky enough to avoid games in full view of the media, you have to contend with two teams who have no problem with scrutinising every throw-in, tackle and red card decision, not to mention the stick from the supporters, be it a crowd of thousands or one man and his dog.

So what would possess someone to take up one of the toughest positions in football? Well, if you’re Sunny Gill (pictured above right with brother Bhupinder), it is not just because of his love for the game. Rather, it gives him and younger sibling the chance to follow in their father’s footsteps.

Now, it’s nothing new for Asians to follow in the footsteps of their parents and join the family business. But when you consider their dad is none other than Jarnail Singh (pictured left), you realise that they’re not going into the traditional Asian family business. Singh was one of the first south Asians to referee in professional football in England. His journey as a referee began in 1985 and after progressing through the lower leagues in the Midlands, he was appointed as a Football League assistant referee in 1999. It was during the 2004-5 season that he was given a chance to referee in the Football League, taking charge of Bristol Rovers and Bury in August 2004. It was also the game in which he flashed his first red card, to Bury’s Colin Woodthorpe. Both Sunny and Bhupinder followed their father’s career, which came to an end in May 2010. His contribution to the game was rewarded with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural Asian Football Awards which took place at Wembley Stadium in January 2012.

“From a young age, I have seen my dad come through the ranks and make the national list as a referee,” Sunny Gill told DesiBallers. “I must have been about 11-years-old and I always thought my dad was a referee because he couldn’t play football!

“Then I started seeing him on TV and realised that my dad achieved his dream. I remember going to watch my dad referee at Wolves against Burnley. When he walked out of the tunnel, you had 25,000 people clapping and cheering and that’s when I realised i wanted to become a referee and follow in my dad’s footsteps.”

Gill is currently a level four referee, allowing him to officiate in the Suburban, Ryman and Southern leagues. He has set his sights in progressing up to level three, which will allow him to referee in the Blue Square Bet Premier and South divisions.

While his progress from level nine, which is the entry point for qualified referees, to his current position has been pretty rapid, Gill concedes he will face plenty of barriers to continue his rise.
“It’s not easy to progress up ladder; it’s a tough challenge and you can easily quit because it’s a very hard job. When you’re a county referee (levels 9-5) it’s not as hard as you have to achieve certain marks from assessments to gain promotion. Once you gain level four status, that is where it gets tough as your controlled by the FA and you are on a merit table with about 900+ referees across the country. So far, I have been lucky and gained promotion each year as a referee but I’m sure I will face many barriers in the near future as the challenges get harder.”
Gill (right: pictured with QPR’s DJ Campbell) added: “I am also on the Middlesex county referees academy and the National regional development group for referees. Being on the academy and national development group adds a bit of pressure as you’re expected to get promoted in a certain amount of time. Referees on these groups get handpicked and are watched more closely.”

Despite the challenges, both Sunny and his brother, who was recently nominated for level four status, have enjoyed the journey. But what does dad think about his two sons stepping into the Lion’s Den and is there added pressure knowing they have a father who has refereed at a professional level?

“I don’t think it adds pressure knowing my dad made it as a professional. If anything, I think this helps because both my brother and I have a mentor who has been there and done it. The advice and help we get, you can’t beat it. I’m sure dad wants us to referee at the highest level but he keeps our feet on the ground and always reminds me and my brother to take one step at a time.”

He added: “My dad is proud we have become referees and decided to follow his footsteps but it will be a dream come true for him if we both make it professional and one day he can watch us on Match of the Day. He always tells us to keep fit and get fitter each year and listen to his advice.”

Over the past few weeks, there have been countless moments where there have been even more scrutiny on referee’s decisions. Whether it was the ‘goal’ which didn’t cross the line during Chelsea’s FA Cup semi-final against Tottenham at Wembley Stadium or Ashley Young taking a dive to win a penalty for Manchester United at Old Trafford, the man in black has been the one who bears the brunt of the criticism. Despite this, Gill believes he is equipped not only to deal with criticism, but get the big decisions right.

“Being a referee is the hardest job, no matter what level you referee at,” says Gill. “Managers and players always see things that you don’t see as a referee, which is the most annoying at times. You need to be thick-skinned and learn to handle situations like that. It’s an art and it all comes together with experience. It’s not easy I can assure you but I love the challenge and come through on top each time.

“As for fans (criticising), that’s part of the game; fans will always give you stick. I quite enjoy it as it makes me perform better. When you start your career as a referee, you don’t come across too many fans until you reach level four. Now I go to a game where there can be anything from 100-600 fans watching the game and that’s when the fans get on your back and give you some stick.”

But despite facing what some might call ‘banter’ from the fans, Gill says he hasn’t suffered from any discrimination or racism as a referee.

“I haven’t faced any discrimination or racism in my refereeing career so far which is always positive. You will always face verbal abuse as a referee but it’s all about how you deal with it. You will come out on top if you deal with these situations the correct way.”

While Gill is looking to move up the refereeing ladder and officiate in the professional game, he is also hoping his name is kept out of the spotlight, which will mean he has done a good job and not become centre of attention. And once he makes it to the top, he won’t be too worried about what the fans and pundits have to say about his decisions, rather it will be his dad’s analysis which will probably put him under pressure.

Follow Sunny Gill on his refereeing adventures on Twitter: @sunnygillgill

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Guide To Marking Referees

The mark awarded by a club must be based on the referee's overall performance, It is most important that the mark is awarded fairly and not based upon isolated incidents or previous games. The referee's performance should be determined by the table below which should act as a guide for the overall mark which should fall within the mark range for each standard of performance.

91-100
The referee was extremely accurate in decision making and very successfully controlled the game using management and communication skills to create an environment of fair play, adding real value to the game.

81-90
The referee was very accurate in decision making and successfully controlled the game using management and communication skills to create an environment of fair play.

71 - 80
The referee was accurate in decision making and controlled the game well, communicating with the players, making a positive contribution towards fair play.

61-70
The referee was reasonably accurate in decision making, controlled the game quite well and communicated with players, establishing a reasonable degree of fair play.

51-60
The referee had some shortcomings in the level of accuracy of decision making and control, with only limited success in communicating with the players resulting in variable fair play.

50 and below
The referee had significant shortcomings in the level of accuracy of decision making and control with poor communication with the players which resulted in low levels of fair play

Notes

Using a scale of up to 100 allows greater flexibility for clubs to distinguish between different refereeing performances more accurately.

A mark within each mark range can be given to reflect the referee's performance e.g. a mark of 79 indicates a somewhat better performance than a mark of 71.

A mark between 71 and 80 represents the standard of refereeing expected.

When a mark of 50 or less is awarded, an explanation must be provided to the League or Competition by completing the appropriate box on the marking form. It must include comments which could help improve the referee's future performances. Even where a referee has significant shortcomings there will have been some positive aspects which should be given credit; extremely low marks (below 20) should be very rare.

How to Decide on the referee's Mark

The following questions focus on the key areas of a referee's performance. They are intended as an "aide memoire", are not necessarily comprehensive and need not be answered individually. It is, however, worth considering them before committing yourself to a mark for the referee.

CONTROL AND DECISION MAKING

- How well did the referee control the game?
- Were the players' actions recognized correctly?
- Were the Laws applied correctly?
- Were all incidents dealt with efficiently/effectively?
- Were all the appropriate sanctions applied correctly?
- Was the referee always within reasonable distance of incidents?
- Was the referee well positioned to make critical decisions, especially in and around the penalty area?
- Did the referee understand the players' positional intentions and keep out of the way accordingly?
- Did the referee demonstrate alertness and concentration throughout the game?
- Did the referee apply the use of the advantage to suit the mood and temperature of the game?
- Was the referee aware of the players' attitude to advantage?
- Did the referee use the assistants effectively?
- Did the officials work as a team, and did the referee lead and manage them to the benefit of the game?

COMMUNICATION AND PLAYER MANAGEMENT

- How well did the referee communicate with the players during the game?
- Did the referee's level of involvement/profile suit this particular game?
- Did the referee understand the players' problems on the day ? e.g. difficult ground/weather conditions?
- Did the referee respond to the changing pattern of play/mood of players'
- Did the referee demonstrate empathy for the game, allowing it to develop in accordance with the tempo of the game?
- Was the referee pro-active in controlling of the game?
- Was the referee's authority asserted firmly without being officious
- Was the referee confident and quick thinking?
- Did the referee appear unflustered and unhurried when making critical decisions?
- Did the referee permit undue questioning of decisions?
- Did the referee deal effectively with players crowding around after decisions/incidents?
- Was effective player management in evidence?
- Was the referee's body language confident and open at all times?
- Did the pace of the game, the crowd or player pressure affect the referee negatively?

Final Thoughts

- Always try to be objective when marking. You may not obtain the most objective view by marking immediately after the game.
- Judge the performance over the whole game. Don?t be too influenced by one particular incident.
- Don't mark the referee down unfairly because your team was unlucky and lost the game or some disciplinary action was taken against your players.

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