"extr@time"

A few items to smile for:

Field Markings come and go:
In a recent game in Brazil - ''What the ref did was interesting. He grabbed the ball and put it down where the foul had happened. Then he reached into a pocket, took out a canister and sprayed some white stuff in a circle round the ball. Next he walked forward, pacing out 10 yards, stopped, bent down, drew a straight line across the pitch and waved the players behind it before going back to blow for the kick.
Certainly interesting approach to getting the 10 yards (9.15m) correct. Could have also had another canister of CS gas for the players who did not comply!

Heavy Rain:
A match between two non-League teams took place last winter in the North of England. It had been raining heavily all week and the ground resembled a swamp.
However, the referee ruled that play was possible and tossed the coin to determine ends.
The visiting captain won the toss and, after a moment's thought, said, 'OK - we'll take the shallow end!'

York Referees Revenge:
York Brewery have produced some ale (4% proof), called "York Referees Revenge".
I haven't had a tipple yet, have you?
Not recommended BEFORE a game!!

Goalkeeper balloon's the ball:
Ton Janssens, a keeper training with Belgian side Veerle Sport FC, lofted the ball skyward and watched it as it disappeared into the basket of a passing hot air balloon.

The two ladies in the balloon had time to dive out of the way, then were kind enough to throw the ball back.

Going for a Moreno!
An Italian town has named a set of public toilets "Moreno" after Ecuadorean official Byron moreno, the referee blamed for Italy's 2-1 defeat by S Korea in the World Cup.

Scottish Referees are short sighted:
Scottish referees have agreed a £1m sponsorship deal with Specsavers over 4 years. The money will be used to train a further 300 referees, taking the total number of referees in Scotland to more than 2,000.

With this ring, I thee wed….. Two Russian boxers exchanged vows and then blows in a boxing ring in St Petersburg at the end of Jan 2003.
Nikolai Kibkalo and Natalya Karpovich donned traditional wedding outfits and boxing gloves.
Ding…end of round one. Knockout in round 7 predicted.

Not many people know that...
Balls were not exactly round when the first club and country matches took place. A pig’s bladder was blown up like a balloon, tied at the ends and placed inside a leather case, affording it an egg shape. The discovery of Indian rubber in the 1860s gave the ball greater roundness.

Over the bar
In the FA rules of 1863, there was no mention of a crossbar. As in rugby today, a goal could be scored at any height as long as the ball went between the sticks or posts. A tape was used to close the goal during the first internationals before a crossbar replaced it in 1875.

A Pat on the Back
A Referee who is sprinting to keep up with play, slips up on a cow pat and falls flat on the ground with his yellow and red card, whistle and false teeth flying out in all directions. He picks up all of his displaced articles and is about to continue his run, when a player who is running in the same direction also slips up on the same cow pat.
"I just did that" says the Referee.
"Well next time, clean it up after you"; shouts the angry player.

Playboy on the line
A well-known Brazilian soccer lineswoman, already in trouble over a mistake she made during a match last month, has raised eyebrows with her decision to pose nude for Playboy magazine.
Ana Paula Oliveira, a 29-year-old brunette who also campaigns for women's rights, signed a contract with the magazine this week and will appear in its July edition without her usual sports attire.
The Brazilian Soccer Confederation said it was not considering any sanctions against Oliveira, one of a handful of female referee assistants in Brazil, but indicated it may be bad for her career.
"If she took that decision, it's because she must have other career thoughts," Lance! a sports daily, quoted the president of the confederation's refereeing commission, Edson Rezende, as saying through a spokesman.
Oliveira was banned for three games for mistakenly disallowing at least one goal during a Copa Brasil match in May, and has not been called up for any top league matches since. The mistake contributed to debate in Brazil about the presence of female officials at top games.
Fellow lineswoman Aline Lambert told the same Friday edition of the paper that posing nude "is incompatible with the profession".
Columnist and former World Cup referee Jose Wright said it would now be difficult for Oliveira to become a referee.
But Oliveira said in an Internet chat on Futebol no Interior (Football in the Outback) Web site she was still hoping to be a referee in future World Cup tournaments. She said her mother had told her to accept the Playboy deal. Local media estimate the deal would earn her nearly $250,000.

German female referee.....with her clothes on
Bibiana Steinhaus is to make history as she has been the first woman to be appointed by the German Football Federation (DFB) to referee a match in the German Bundesliga.

The DFB announced Saturday that the 28-year-old policewoman from the northern German city of Hanover has been included in the list of 22 referees who will officiate in the second Bundesliga division.
Steinhaus who started her referee career in 1995 was selected 'best female referee of the year' by the DFB for the 2005/6 season.

For the last six years, Steinhaus has been in charge in the third football division.
There are 18 female referees who are officiating at various amateur levels.
A good or bad performance of a referee during the season can lead to either his or her promotion into a higher league or the relegation into lower football division.
The final decision is made by the DFB at the end of each season.

If you have any interesting stories why not email them to me!