Thursday, June 8 – 1939
The age limit for Football League referees has been dropped from 50 to 45 years and as a result well-known officials are among the dozen missing from the list of appointments for next season.
The age reduction is the corollary of the League’s decision to reduce the age limit for new linesmen from 40 to 35 years, it being considered only fair to increase correspondingly the prospects of promotion to referees.
No announcement is made as to which of the referees are being retired because of the reduced age qualification. Altogether 18 vacancies in the list of 50 senior referees occurred through this cause and through resignations, and these have been filled by promotions from the supplementary list in the usual way.
Promotions and absentees.
To the latter there have been 18 promotions from the linesmen’s list, with a 19th to fill another vacancy caused by a resignation.
Names missing as compared with last season’s senior list are: Dr. A.W. Barton (Repton), resigning through being appointed Grammar School headmaster at Sheffield; A.J. Jewell (London), appointed manager of Norwich City FC; J.R. Stockbridge, who resigned before last season opened; and T. Bentley (Manchester), R.W. Blake (Middlesbrough), E.C. Carnwell (Lichfield), G.T. Davies (Bury), G.C. Denton (Northampton), W.P. Harper (Stourbridge), G. Hewitt (St. Helens), W.R. Jennings (York), W.J. Lewington (Croydon), H.N. Mee (Mansfield), J.E. Mellor (Bradford), R.G. Rudd (Kenton, Middlesex), A. Taylor (Wigan), E.W. Vokes (Bath), and J.E. Williams (Bolton).
The new list.
The appointments for next season are: –
Ames (Redditch), Appleyard (Rotherham), Argent (St. Albans).
Baker (Crewe), Baker (Manchester), Barrick (Northampton), Berry (Huddersfield), Blackhall (Wednesbury), Boardman (Hale), Bone (Grimsby), Booth (Heywood), Brown (London).
Clark (London), Clark (London).
Dale (Sheffield), Daly (London), Davies (Wincanton), Davison (Spennymoor), Dixon ((Lincoln), Duerden (Burnley), Dutton (Warwick).
Evans (Liverpool).
Fletcher (Davenham).
Gibbs (Reading), Gough (Stoke-on-Trent), Gould (London), Greenan (Bradford), Greenwood (London), Griffin (Bristol).
Hann (Glastobury), Hargreaves (Preston), Hartles (Runcorn), Hartley (Bolton).
Iliffe (Northampton).
Johnson (Effingham), Jones (Nottingham).
Law (West Bromwich), Lowe (Bristol).
Mackenzie (Bulwell), Martin (Carlisle), Martin (Leeds), Meadows (Redcar), Milner (Wolverhampton), Moore (Boston Spa), Mortimer (Huddersfield).
Nattrass (Sunderland), Nicholson (Darlington), Nixon (Manchester).
Parker (Derby), Pearce (Luton), Percy (Liverpool), Plinston (Warrington), Plyer (Weymouth).
Rayner (Huddersfield), Reader (Southampton), Reed (London), Ross Gower (London).
Salmon (Stoke-on-Trent), Searle (Salisbury), Smith (Maryport), Smith (Atherstone), Snape (Manchester), Stevens (Luton), Strainge (Bristol).
Tedds (Nottingham), Thompson (Leamington), Tucker (Nottingham), Twist (Westhoughton).
Wainwright (Hull), Wakley (Somerton), Warburton (Bolton), Warr (Bolton), Whitfield (Middlesbrough), Williams (London), Williams (Bolton), Wiltshire (Sherborne), Worth (Nottingham), Wright (Macclesfield), Wright (Derby), Wrightson (Barnsley).
(Lancashire Evening Post, 08-06-1939)
"Play Up, Liverpool" 