Match official cum author Liam Gavin is donating part of the proceeds from his new book to IPFBA

We are honoured and delighted that 10% of the sales of ex-League of Ireland referee Liam Gavin’s new book, My Little Wooden Whistle, will be donated to the IPFBA.

Now happily retired in Rush, Dublin, Liam is busy visiting referees society meetings around the country during 2024-25 to promote his passion project (subtitled: 100 Years of FAI Cup Referees and other stories) which is also supporting the Irish Soccer Referees Benevolent Fund to the same extent.

“There’s plenty of of stuff in there for players too,” stresses the 67-year-old, who “had the pleasure of running (or walking) the line for Pat Kelly in May when Shamrock Rovers Legends played Bray Wanderers Legends for Jacko McDonagh.”

Having bought a set of Subbuteo officials so that he could referee his schoolfriends at table football at age nine, Liam’s 20-year career with whistle and flag included FAI Junior and Senior Cup Finals, two Leinster Senior Cup Finals, four UEFA Internationals, and nearly 400 games as a member of the League of Ireland panel.

He gave career advice to a young Roy Keane, “which thankfully he completely ignored”, and taught the European Footballer of the Year how to clean boots properly.

Telling tales from the thick of the action with humour and candour, Liam recalls how he once cautioned a player for kicking a dog, and he was chased half the length of the pitch after giving a goal where the player punched the ball into the net. He survived to tell the tale, and to write this 246-page memoir.

With a foreword from IPFBA secretary Martin Lawlor, the book documents how in the first hundred years of the FAI Cup, just 81 referees handled the 128 finals (including replays and one year in which there were two complete competitions).

As well as 60 Irish referees, 20 Englishmen, and one Belgian took charge of the games. They included the man who refereed the first World Cup Final, the referee for the first European Cup Final, and one referee who believed in carrying a gun in his pocket!

Liam’s book tells their stories. The careers of top Irish referees, including John Carpenter, Eamonn Farrell, Paddy Daly and Pat Kelly are also examined, with photos of over 200 match officials, going right back to the very first final in 1922.

Changes to the Laws of The Game since 1922 are described, season by season, with fascinating details of the political shenanigans at the annual meetings of the International Board of FIFA.

The ups and downs of the author’s own refereeing career are also described, including the back story to the 1983 Cup Final, other games Liam likes to remember, and some he wishes he could forget. It’s a must read for any referee, and a fascinating insight into this part of the beautiful game for any sports fan.

My Little Wooden Whistle retails for €25, including post & packaging.

• Email liamggavin2@gmail.com for details.