‘I get it,” I say, maybe a little too enthusiastically as Bibi Steinhaus-Webb, the head of women’s refereeing in England, sits down in the chair opposite me. I’ve forgotten to press record for our interview and blurt out: “I now understand why someone would want to be a referee.”
Before spending a day at the Professional Game Match Officials Ltd (PGMOL)’s select group women’s professional game training camp I had struggled to comprehend why anyone would go into refereeing, where your every thought and decision will be picked apart, analysed, criticised and rarely praised.
