As we all know the game of Rugby League wouldn't be able to function without the input of a match official.

The game as a whole, from juniors to Super League needs to have a third 'team' on the pitch to look after the game and the players during play. Taking up the whistle as a Rugby League match official doesn't involve lots of courses and boring classroom sessions as it did in the past, nowadays there is an easier way of gaining the skills required to become a fully qualified match official.

The normal path to becoming qualified is to find your local Match Officials Foundation Course being run by the RFL, these can all be found on the RFL website (www.therfl.co.uk/referee/courses). The RFL are always on the look out for new officials and previous experience is not necessarily a pre requisite. Anyone wanting to give refereeing a go is more than welcome. But as always we are on the look out for spectators, parents and ex players who want to contribute to or stay involved with the game.

Once you pass your course, you will be helped along by the local development team who will guide you using their combined experience and help you become the best match official you can or want to be. There are regular training session which take place at venues throughout the region and are available free of charge to all active match officials.

Within the Southern region there are active match officials on a variety of top level games including those in the Stobart Super League, Carnegie Challenge Cup, Co-Operative Championship, Northern Rail Cup and the Valvoline Cup. These officials are all involved in developing future match officials, so there is a lot of experience available to draw on.