Aussie referees snubbed

Peter O’Leary and Michael Hester are among 30 top referees chosen by FIFA to be contenders to control matches in the tournament starting on June 12 (AEST).

For the first time since 1994 no Australian referee has been picked for the World Cup.

“I’m very, very excited because I’ve never been to a World Cup,” O’Leary, 37, said from his home town Hamilton.

“We were all on tenterhooks the last two weeks, waiting for the decision to be made, and this morning I switched on my computer, logged on to a special website for referees and found out the great news.

“It is definitely the highlight of my career so far, very much so.

“I hope to become the first New Zealand referee to control a finals match at the World Cup. With the All Whites having qualified for their second World Cup it’s going to be a great World Cup for our football.”

O’Leary, who has been on the FIFA panel since 2003, is one of the A-League’s most respected referees but his selection and that of lesser known compatriot Hester came as a surprise.

O’Leary last refereed a full international in 2008 when he controlled the Fiji versus New Caledonia match in Ba while Sydney's Matthew Breeze, who expressed “surprise” at his exclusion, has a much higher profile in Asia.

“FIFA instructors watch all of our games (in the A-League and in New Zealand) and being consistent and applying the laws has really helped,” O’Leary said.

“I was a bit surprised Matthew Breeze was not considered but, mind you, all the referees who were on the short list have put their best foot forward the last three years after we were identified as potential World Cup referees.”

The list of 30 referees curiously includes Swedish referee Martin Hansson, who allowed the controversial handball from Frenchman Thierry Henry that effectively eliminated Republic of Ireland from the World Cup.

Hansson was widely criticised for failing to spot a double handling infringement by Henry that led to France’s late equaliser in a 1-1 draw in Paris in the second leg of a playoff.

The geographical breakdown of the referees is: Europe 10, South America 6, Central and North America 4, Asia 4, Africa 4 and Oceania 2.