Official Kicks: Morag Pirie

A first-person piece by Morag Pirie, an accountant from north-east Scotland who has become one of the top twenty officials in Europe. Pirie describes refereeing a UEFA qualifier in Bosnia that turned niggly after she gave a drop ball the Bosnians did not return, and reflects on how one incident outside her control can change a game. She mainly referees men’s football in the Highland League, often driving two or three hours each way with her father for company, and has taken charge of the 2008 Challenge Cup final and Scotland women’s internationals. She gave up playing as a goalkeeper because refereeing meant missing three Sundays in four. She recalls forming a ten-strong UEFA dance troupe in Portugal with Swedish official Pernilla Larsson.