McManus achieves FIFA status
It was back to his old stomping ground for match official Reuben McManus when he took charge of a North Eastern Counties Schoolbys' League (NECSL) u-15 game between Parkvilla and Kells/Blackwater last Saturday morning - only this time it was a little different. The Navan official has taken charge of numerous NECSL games in his eight-year refereeing career, but Saturday was his first outing as a FIFA-registered match official. "I wanted my first match to be in the same league as where I started out," he told the Meath Chronicle. McManus (34) only recently received his FIFA badge last week and he is now qualified to officiate up to World Cup level. However, a more realistic target for him right now would be running the line (assistant-referee) in a Europa League or a Champions' League game. It is all a long way from 2003 when McManus took his first tentative steps as a referee in the NECSL, after injury ended his playing career. Now he is one of only 12 officials in the Republic of Ireland with a FIFA qualification, a select group that includes four referees and eight assistants. Describing the acquisition of the FIFA badge as a "dream come true" McManus's first international assignment as a FIFA official will be as assistant-referee in a u-17 UEFA qualifying tournament in Germany later this month. "It's like everything else, you have to start at the bottom and work your way up." said McManus who pointed to the achievements of top official Alan Kelly. The Cork man became the first Irish referee to be appointed to a Champions' League game when he handled the tie between Romanian side CFR Cluj and FC Basel last autumn. "It was a wonderful achievement for Alan, but he has been involved in the game for a good few years now and it has taken him that time to get to the Champions League stage." McManus who works in the Defence Forces, has already experienced the challenges of international football. He ran the line in a friendly between Nottingham Forest and the Republic of Ireland B side at Dalymount Park. He has also filled in as an assistant in other international games including a u-23 encounter between the Republic of Ireland and Slovakia as well as games in the Regions Cup, a tournament made up of amateur teams from various countries. The Navan official was also on the line for a National League Cup final between Derry City and Wexford Youths in 2008 which he regards as his biggest appointment so far. His most high-profile game was the pre-season friendly between Real Madrid and Shamrock Rovers in 2009 when the Spanish giants brought all their big guns to the Tallaght Stadium including the newly-signed Ronaldo. Some time ago McManus made the choice of concentrating on becoming a linesman (assistant-referee) for League or Ireland or international games. When match officials reach a certain stage in their careers they are required to make the choice between becoming a referee or a linesman and McManus opted for the latter. To reach the highest standard as a referee he feels he would have needed to start his career much younger than he did. McManus says it has taken a lot of hard graft and some luck to obtain his FIFA badge. Not only has he sacrificed a lot of time with his young family he has also changed his job to help him develop his career. He sought a transfer from the army ordnance unit in the Curragh, a job which he says he loved, to the Air Corps at Baldonnel. "There's more flexibility in the new job and that's very important if you have a match for example. If I wasn't in the defence forces it would be difficult to do what I'm doing," he said. I've also got a very understanding wife Jenny because I've two games a week and I train about three days a week, it can be very demanding on your time." He adds that despite the challenges of the role, he enjoys refereeing games or filling in as a linesman - whether on the international stage or in the NECSL. "It doesn't really matter, it's all about getting out there. Like a bug it really catches you."