THE new team at Hexham Referees’ Association (RA) is bringing fresh ideas to the football pitch.

The recently constructed team of new and long serving members will hold a branch meeting for the area for the first time in a number of years.

With relations between teams and referees rapidly souring and a worrying lack of officials in the game, the team is keen to act and ensure things improve in the local area. New secretary Peter Fletcher recently attended a meeting of the Hexham and District Sunday League asking for opinions about refereeing, with the results soon to be distributed.

And the branch meeting is a big step for the branch as it welcomes existing members and non-members, particularly those interested in becoming an official or managers, secretaries and captains of local teams. During the meeting, a £50 prize to the winner of a sports quiz will be dished out while people will also be allowed to join in with the ‘If you were the referee, what would you do?’ feature.

In addition, the Hexham RA will hold a referee course in the Tyne Valley in April. The date of the meeting is still to be finalised.