Football League referee and Premier League fourth official James Linington has visited St Mary’s Catholic Primary School to deliver a special workshop on the use of technology in modern refereeing.
The East Cowes-born official, who regularly officiates at the highest levels of English football, spent time with Year 6 pupils to explain how referees make decisions during matches and how tools such as VAR are used in the professional game.
As part of the visit, pupils were challenged to design a new piece of technology that could be used by referees in the future.
Year 6 pupil Rose Hitchcock said:
“This has inspired me to take up refereeing. James said I have to be 14 years old to take the course.”
Mr Dignan, Year 6 teacher at St Mary’s, has said:
“It’s important children learn about decision making and conflict resolution, especially as they move into KS3. I really enjoyed listening to James talk about how decisions are made in the modern game.
Article continues below this advertisement “You never know, the next Football League referee could be a child from St Mary’s Catholic Primary School!”
