Words: Staff Writers
Images: Albert Perez/Football Queensland

Adam Kersey has refereed in the Hyundai A-League, the Chinese Super League and was in the middle for last year’s PlayStation® 4 National Premier Leagues Grand Final.

He’s also the first to feature in our new PS4 NPL Referee Spotlight series.

How did you originally become involved in football?

I started playing football when I was 5 or 6 at our local club in Brisbane and kept playing until I was 13. My older brother played as well and my parents were involved in the club as a manager and sports trainer, so it was inevitable that I’d end up playing football.

Why did you become a referee?

My older brother took a refereeing course through school and was refereeing when I turned 14. I decided to do the course and give it a go. At 14, it was a great way to earn some pocket money and keep fit, so that was the motivation early on.

What aspects of being a referee do you enjoy most?

The camaraderie we’ve built as a group in Brisbane is something that keeps me coming back each week. We’ve got a great group of guys and girls that we train with each week and I’ve made some friends that I’ll have for the rest of my life. Refereeing has also given me a number of amazing opportunities that I wouldn’t have had if I was not a referee. And finally, it gives me a way to stay involved in a sport that I love.

What is the highlight of your refereeing career to date?

There have been too many to narrow it down to one. Refereeing in the Hyundai A-League has been a great honour. Refereeing in front of almost 40,000 people in a Chinese Super League game was surreal and an amazing atmosphere. Going to England, meeting the EPL referees and being involved in their pre and post-match processes was an excellent experience and gave me a greater understanding of what we do and how to do it at an elite level.

How do you spend your time away from football?

I’m an accountant by day and am currently studying the Chartered Accountants program. It’s extremely boring and takes up a lot of my spare time (or at least it should). I like to play golf as much as possible and don't mind catching up with mates over a few beers.

What is a common misconception people have about referees?

I think there’s a perception that we referee on the weekend for two hours and that’s it. There’s a lot more that goes into it than just the match we referee on the weekend. We spend a considerable amount of time during the week training, self-assessing and watching clips to improve our refereeing. After each NPL game, I would spend two to three hours re-watching the match, clipping and reviewing key incidents and conducting a self-assessment. Add to that training two or three nights a week, watching football on weekends (EPL, HAL, Euros, etc.) and then refereeing our actual matches, football and refereeing takes up a majority of our lives.

What advice do you have for an aspiring referee or someone thinking about joining the Third Team?

For someone thinking about becoming a referee, give it a go, you might just love it. Football refereeing has given me some fantastic opportunities that I'll remember forever. If you love the game, want to keep fit and have a thick skin, I’d definitely recommend becoming a referee. For aspiring referees, work hard and take each match as a learning opportunity. There’s always something that you can learn from in each game. Listen to your coaches and mentors, take on board their comments and then choose what you think can make you a better referee.