LIKE Uriah Rennie, Jarnail Singh was a pioneer in refereeing.
And the first Asian to take charge of a Football League match shares Rennie’s frustration that there are no BAME refs at the top level of English football.
Jarnail Singh became the EFL’s first Asian referee in 2004Credit: Getty Images – Getty
But Singh has two good reasons to be optimistic: his sons Sunny and Bhupinder Gill, who are blazing a trail for the next generation of non-white officials.
Now 58 and a referee-observer for League One and Two, Singh said: “I knew Uriah on a professional basis and had the privilege of working with him on a Premier League game as a fourth official.
“I am very disappointed about the number of BAME match officials that have reached the top level of the professional game.
“Hopefully both Sunny and Bhupinder and other match officials can change that in the years to come.”
Singh’s sons have made important steps recently.
Sunny, 36 and a prison officer, recently learned he is now a Level 2a Panel Select ref who can take charge of National League Premier matches.
He said: “I’m over the moon with the promotion.
“I was used to seeing my dad on TV, it was something you had to be proud of.
“Back then I wasn’t even thinking about becoming a referee.
“Now I want to go all the way to the Premier League.
“I want BAME referees to know that we can get to the professional game and to help in building a platform for them to do the course and start their journey in the game.”
Sunny Gill is setting his sights on the Premier League after a recent promotion
Bhups, as he is known, is a step ahead of Sunny, having worked for two years in League One and Two after opting for the assistant referee career path.
He has just been appointed to work at a League Two Play-Off semi-final on June 22.
Bhups, 35 and a secondary school PE teacher, said: “My main objective is to be a role model.
“There are so many roles within football that the BAME community can get involved in and I think they just need guidance, a positive role model and a representation.
“This is so important to me, as if it wasn’t for my dad, I wouldn’t have thought twice about becoming an official.”
Bhups Gill will be an assistant ref at the L2 Pay-Off semi-final on June 22
Singh arrived in England from India as a boy and found his way into football as a player and coach with Punjab Rovers in a local Wolverhampton league.
A desire to know the laws of the game better led him to attending a refereeing course at which he was the only Asian.
Jarnail, who moved to West London in the mid 1980’s, was aware of racism in the game despite not experiencing any himself.
He said: “There were clubs in the leagues that had those kind of views.
“I have a lot of friends round here, Southall, Hounslow area, where the National Front and that all started.
”They tell me some horrendous stories of being locked in changing rooms and having to call the police.”
Singh made his EFL debut in August 2004Credit: Rex Features
Jarnail climbed the pyramid by gaining experience – and losing weight – before earning the right to make history at a League Two game in August 2004.
He said: “It was a Tuesday night. Bristol Rovers versus Bury. I remember the drive – nervous, but looking forward to it.
“It ended 2-2, one player sent off and two cautioned, and the game went well.
“Being the first Sikh with a turban and a beard that had officiated at Conference level, Football League and Championship, I was aware that I was representing not only myself and my family, but a wider community.”
Singh retired as a referee in 2010 and received a lifetime achievement gong at the FA’s first Asian Football Awards in 2012.
Sunny and Bhups started refereeing as teenagers at summer tournaments for Asian teams organised by the Khalsa Football Federation, a charity supported by Sporting Equals and Sport England.
Sunny Gill says being an Asian match official can work for and against you
Premier League ref Andre Marriner also worked at KFF tournaments but Sunny is currently the only Asian refereeing at National League level or above.
Sunny believes being an Asian match official is a double-edged sword.
He said: “When you make a mistake, teams and managers remember because they won’t forget an Asian or BAME face.
“But when you do something good, that’s also remembered.
“And I haven’t got where I am because I’m rubbish.”
Bhups Gill points out that some Asian parents still don’t encourage their kids to think of sport as a possible career
It seems that perceptions within the Asian community can be as big a factor as outside prejudice in hampering participation..
Bhups said: “I’m pushing my kids into sport.
“But there are parents who are still old fashioned. Often they wouldn’t think that there was a future in football, no money involved, that you have to go straight into being a doctor or solicitor or lawyer.”
Singh is delighted to see his sons following in his footsteps and representing the Asian and broader BAME community.
Singh said: “What father wouldn’t be proud of what their sons are trying to achieve and what they have achieved so far?
“I think they will both go further, then I’ll die a happy man.”
Bhups and Sunny Gill are leading the way for Asian match officials
In Pursuit of Progress is the FA’s three-year equality, diversity and inclusion plan. In 2019, the FA launched its Asian Inclusion Strategy, a five-pillar plan that aims to address the underrepresentation of Asian communities by encouraging more players, coaches, referees and staff from an Asian background to make football their chosen career path.
For more information, go to: www.thefa.com/football-rules-governance/asianinclusion
For further information on how to get into refereeing, go to: www.thefa.com/get-involved/referee/general-information
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
