Throughout the season whenever a referee officiates a game at a Yorkshire club they complete a short questionnaire online to rate their overall experience. They rate clubs on criteria including; the discipline of the players on the field of play, facilities available (such as the pitch being correctly marked with spectator barriers) and of course how hospitable the home club has been. The scores from these are added up and averaged out over the season with the highest scoring club being the awarded the Whistlers Trophy.

The Whistler’s Trophy hasn’t been awarded for a number of seasons, however last year it was resurrected in our area and we are delighted to say that Selby RUFC were the winners of that trophy and last Saturday, after the Bradford Salem match, Dougie Skelton received the award on behalf of the Club.

Referees do what they do for the love of the game. We are always very grateful to them and strive to look after our officials and make their refereeing experience at Selby a good one and we accept this award with pride – and hopefully well on the way to receiving it again this season!

Thank you to Richard Besley and all the Match Day Managers who meet, greet and look after our referees.

Pictured with Dougie and presenting the Whistler's Trophy is Nev Bracken, North & Cleveland Referee Society Chairman.