Rotherham pupil shoots for his World Cup goals

Connor, a 17-year-old football fanatic, first gained an interest in refereeing through his avid viewing of football matches.

He decided to explore this passion further after encouragement from a staff member at The Willows School, a special school in Rotherham.

Head of PE Lee Knight, who had previously been a referee, was able to advise Connor about how he could pursue his interest and support him to follow his dream of working in football professionally.

In spite of the difficulties Connor might face as a young referee, such as making challenging decisions and managing his time, he remained dedicated to achieving his goals.

He completed an FA referee training course paid for by The Willows School and with the support of another teacher at the school, Tom Halloway, a referee with Sheffield and Hallamshire County Football Association.

He completed five online modules which covered the basics of refereeing and the laws of football and also underwent safeguarding checks, which included paying for a safeguarding course using his own savings, and attended face-to-face training sessions.

The sessions boosted his expertise further, expanding his knowledge on difficult topics such as dealing with inappropriate behaviour and managing offsides.

Headteacher Rachael Booth said the Willows aims to encourage all its students to pursue their passions and achieve their goals regardless of their backgrounds or additional needs.

Connor has already been assistant referee for two Sheffield County Senior League games and one Sheffield and Hallamshire Women’s FA Cup match.

He has also refereed a charity football match which raised funds for an organisation which supports families bereaved by infant loss – and now dreams from the World Cup to the Euros.

The Year 13 student said: “I am looking forward to starting my referring journey as a level 7 referee, and I am going to work hard to try and achieve my targets.”