For as long as I remember, I have been a referee. When my friends were having a kick about in the backyard or the neighborhood pitch, I would bring along my whistle and content myself with being in the middle. Since the beginning of my life in this beautiful game, I have relished the opportunity to make those big decisions, to be counted on by 22 players to make the right decision, to be fair, and to be effective.
Refereeing, unlike anything I have ever experienced, offers me a new challenge every few minutes and promises to never quit. It offers the opportunity to exercise all aspects of my personality: my physical strength, my mental fitness, and my interpersonal skills. Refereeing makes me a better person, and being a better person makes me a better referee: it is a closed loop of self-improvement that spills over into other aspects of my life. Finally, refereeing has given me the opportunity to meet countless different people from countless different walks of life, all of whom have one thing in common: an undying, burning passion for the beautiful game.
Of course, it isn’t all sunshine and some experiences have left me feeling completely dejected, embarrassed, and, in some cases, afraid. Those undying and burning passions have a way of getting the better of people sometimes and when that happens, it can get downright scary. Stories from across the world of referees being attacked and beaten don’t seem real until you have a player in your face, spit flying, eyes bulging, screaming at the top of his lungs. If that doesn’t get your heart beating a few beats faster, then you should probably see a doctor. But as disparaging as these moments are, the moments that immediately follow them are, without fail, moments of inspiration that pick you up and bring you higher than you could have ever imagined. “Good job, ref, you really handled that well,” says a teammate of the by-now sent-off player whose passions took hold. “Don’t worry about him, ref, you’re calling a good game,” says another. And just like that, you’re back on top and ready to call the game.
Of course, when I started refereeing in my backyard with a handful of friends, I never spared a thought for the level of anger and violence that might be directed at me as my career progressed: because it wasn’t a career. It was a fun pastime and nothing more. But as years went by, and I started to develop, as people started putting more and more trust in me by giving me bigger, more important fixtures, my whole concept of refereeing changed. It was no longer something I just did for fun; it has become nearly an obsession where excellence is the only option.
This passion for excellence, this drive to always be better has enabled me to travel to various parts of the country to referee. I was lucky to be able to get to attend several Youth National Championships as a referee where I’ve met colleagues from every level of officiating in every province in this country. I’ve made some friendships but, more importantly, I have been able to meet a small group of colleagues from across the country with whom I regularly dialogue on tough matches, difficult decisions, mistakes we’ve made and how we can get better. We push each other and that’s not only an invaluable tool but, to someone as competitive as I am, a phenomenal motivator in and of itself.
If I had to put it down to one thing that motivates me to referee, I couldn’t. That’s the reality. When it comes to refereeing, there are so many different things that challenge and motivate me – different things at different times, different things for different reasons. When I first started, it was as a pastime with friends when I didn’t want to play with them; then it became as a way to make a bit of money while still being active in football; next, it became as a way to improve myself; since, it has become a motivation unto itself: it is officiating that motivates me to officiate. I have a deep-seeded desire to make the big decisions, to get them right, to help make a footballing competition great, and to be a part of high-level football. It fuels an ambition, it is an ambition, and it pushes me ever forward. I want to become the best that I can be, reach my potential, and do right by all the people who helped me along the way.
) maybe you could look at some other phrase to start either paragraph 3 or 4 instead of having both starting with 'of course'?