Nor just an appointment. A breakthrough. When the new season starts next month, Sam Allison will become the first black referee in the Football League for 11 years.
And he will be only the second black referee in the English game since Uriah Rennie in 2009. Understandably, when he received the news on Friday evening, Allison – a 38-year-old firefighter from Wiltshire – was overcome with emotion. “I felt like I wanted to well up,” he said. “Because I’ve been under that pressure, that scrutiny. “I know how tough it’s been for my family, so I’m happy – I am so, so happy.
The hard work is paying off. We’re getting somewhere. “Even if you believe that the institution or society is holding you back, when you can start to see it – someone
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