I was glad players chewed my ear off when I was the first female EFL ref… now I’m set to make Premier League history

REBECCA WELCH won’t relax until players give her stick when she becomes the Premier League’s first ever female referee.

She was delighted when stars of Harrogate and Port Vale “chewed my ear off” as the first woman ref at EFL level in April 2021.

Rebecca Welch was the first female ref in the EFL, then in January the first at Championship level, now she’s stepping up to make more historyRex

PAThe whistler from County Durham has been reffing since 2010[/caption]

And when she takes charge of Fulham vs Burnley in the Prem on December 23 she just wants to be treated like any other ref.

SunSport exclusively revealed the 40-year-old’s views on her historic League Two date at Harrogate two years ago.

She said: “The players didn’t treat me any differently – they were still chewing my ear off as they went past.

“That was nice because I was a bit afraid of them not being like that.

“You want players to go, ‘You got that one wrong, ref,’ or ‘It’s gone so well in the last 10 minutes’.

“You need that and when I got it I felt normal and that I could just referee the game.”

But it appears the whistler from Tyneside will not appreciate the massively-increased attention she’ll get from TV coverage in the Prem.

After huge media interest at Harrogate she admitted: “I was sick of hearing the camera clicking, but it’s the nature of the beast.

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“People say it went really well but, for me, it was just a normal game.”

Speaking in a Q&A in aid of North East mental health charity If U Care Share, Welch added: “In 50 years I’ll be in the history books – it’s really nice but, yeah, it’s a game of football.

“But I understand the bigger picture that it’s not about one game, it’s about inspiring the next generation to come through.”

Welch’s big December date will be quickly followed by another one.

Sam Allison has been confirmed as the first black ref in the top flight for 15 years.

The ex-firefighter, 42, oversees Sheffield United vs Luton on Boxing Day.

And PGMOL boss Howard Webb hailed both appointments.

He said: “Both Rebecca and Sam were part of the development group that was created last year. They went through a selection process to be part of that.

“Credit to them they have delivered good performances in the Championship this season and deserve their opportunities due to their quality and the talent that they have.

GettySam Allison will this month become the Prem’s first black ref for 15 years[/caption]

“Of course it’s significant in terms of Rebecca being the first female to take the whistle in the Premier League, she was the fourth official a few weeks ago for the first time, and we have lots of talented female officials working in the game.

“We have Kirsty Dowle taking charge of her first Football League game this weekend at Doncaster Rovers, she’s another Fifa-registered official.

“I just hope that other people will see the success of these female officials, young girls and young women, and think that refereeing might be for them.

“Sam being the first black referee in the Premier League since Uriah Rennie back in 2008, again we know he has performed well in the Championship this year at a consistent level and we are confident he will deliver a strong performance.

“The profile of the game will serve as a role model for others in under-represented communities and that is undoubtedly a positive.

“We need greater diversity because undoubtedly there is quality in all communities and previously for whatever reason we have not been able to bring people through from those groups and now it’s happening at last thankfully.”