Never realised the former ref was a Dub. Not sure when this article is from but interesting to see Don Givens was his hero!!!
http://weekendwonders.co.uk/news/story.aspx?id=55
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Never realised the former ref was a Dub. Not sure when this article is from but interesting to see Don Givens was his hero!!!
http://weekendwonders.co.uk/news/story.aspx?id=55
He was caught on camera at the last world cup in an Ireland shirt (can't access that story above so it may have been mentioned)
Here you go Dodge.....Quote:
Originally Posted by Junior
Dublin-born Dermot Gallagher has more than 30 years' experience of officiating. After only three and a half years on the Football League’s list of referees he was elected to FIFA, and he spent 12 years refereeing in the Premiership.
He's been called every name under the sun and faced the spitting vitriol of highly-paid superstars, but we have something far more scary for Gallagher to face.... The Weekend Wonders' profile questions. Does the Man In Black get a red card or a booking? You decide....
Who’s the best player out of all the referees?That’s an interesting question! Probably Alan Wiley, because he’s committed. He’s good with the ball and he’s a good tackler. He’s got a very steely winner's attitude... but not nasty.
Which is worse: playing Sunday league or reffing it?Oh, definitely reffing it. The best part of football is playing it, even if I took a few kickings. All the referees are frustrated players.
I play likeI dreamt I played like Liam Brady; he was one of the best players Ireland ever had.
Other people say I play likeLily Savage.
Best football achievement
I’ve never won a medal in my life; I’ve played in one cup final and that was because my colleague was injured. And we lost the final 2-1. I felt so guilty that I gave the medal to the player whose place I took.
Worst moment in football
Probably being dropped. I was a reserve team player and I was picked to play at centre-forward one Wednesday evening; I scored two and we won 2-1 against a team that hadn’t been beaten for two years. On Saturday I played in goal against Woodstock Town and we won 4-1. And then I got dropped into the reserves on Wednesday. Gutted. I felt like packing it up there and then.
The best player in our team
Probably a lad called Roger Andrews, who played in midfield. He was very committed, very hard in the tackle, won a lot of balls, and he was probably the difference each season between us finishing bottom... and second from bottom!
Team supported
My boyhood dream was to play for Celtic. Where I grew up everybody’s a Celtic fan.
Did you ever referee Celtic?
I did, seven times in testimonials and friendlies. And they never lost!
Football Hero
Don Givens. He was the Ireland centre-forward when I was at school. He scored a famous hat-trick at Dalymount Park when we beat Russia. Over the years I’ve grown to become a very good friend of Don and it’s just unbelievable that every time I go back to Ireland on a plane he’s there. To become a friend of your hero is wonderful.
Football Villain
I didn’t have a villain. I was just so happy to play and I can’t remember anybody really giving me a good kicking.
Why I’m a Weekend Wonder
I just loved the game: I played four times every weekend. When I was 15, I'd to play for the school on Saturday morning, then play again on Saturday afternoon, then on Sunday morning for the pub team and the youth team in the afternoon.
Dermot Gallagher was speaking at the launch of Special Olympics Great Britain Unified Football programme in partnership with The Vodafone Foundation.
Check out Dermot's expert advice on the laws of the game in The Gaffer's Office.