Jim Finney

James "Jim" Finney (17 August 1924 [ [http://www.zerozero.eu/uk/arbitro.php?id=838&search=1 Birthdate] : "zerozero.eu" website. Retrieved on 2 April 2008.] – 1 April 2008 [http://www.clarets-mad.co.uk/news/loadnews.asp?cid=TMNW&id=385870 "Cup Final referee passes away"] : "ClaretsMad.co.uk" website. Retrieved on 3 April 2008.] ) was an English football referee during the 1960s and 1970s, active on the FIFA list.

Career

After being appointed to the Football League list in 1959, he refereed the Amateur Cup final of that year. Finney then took charge of the 1962 FA Cup Final between Tottenham Hotspur and Burnley. Though the normal practice at the time was for the winning captain to keep the match ball, Danny Blanchflower presented Finney with the ball at the end of the game. He is reported to be one of five freemasons to have refereed the FA Cup Final. [ [http://www.mqmagazine.co.uk/issue-12/p-41.php Jim Finney] - presented with the match ball by Danny Blanchflower, and also reported to be a freemason: article from "MQMagazine" website. Retrieved on 2 April 2008.]

Finney had been held in high regard within the domestic game for some time before this match. He was appointed as a linesman in the first European Nations Cup Final held in Paris in 1960, assisting Ken Aston. In May 1963, Finney was also the referee during the Scotland versus Austria match at Hampden Park, which he abandoned after 79 minutes. [ [http://homepage.ntlworld.com/alan.brown2087/scot-int1963.html Scotland v. Austria] , abandoned after 79 minutes, 1963: "Alan Brown" statistical website. Retrieved on 2 April 2008.] Finney later expressed concern that he thought "somebody would have been seriously hurt". [ [http://www.rsssf.com/tabless/scot-intres1965.html Quote from Finney] , Scotland v. Austria: "RSSSF.com" statistical website. Retrieved on 2 April 2008.]

Later he was selected as one of the English referees at the 1966 World Cup, gaining some notoriety there for his handling of the Uruguay versus West Germany quarter-final in which he sent off Horacio Troche and Héctor Silva. [ [http://www.planetworldcup.com/CUPS/1966/qf_ger_v_uru.html Two sent off] , Uruguay v. West Germany, 1966 World Cup quarter-final: "PlanetWorldCup" website. Retrieved on 2 April 2008.] That was the same day on which the German referee Rudolf Kreitlein sent off Argentinian player Antonio Rattin at Wembley, [ [http://www.planetworldcup.com/CUPS/1966/qf_eng_v_arg.html Rattin of Argentina sent off] , v. England, on the same day, 1966 World Cup quarter-final: "PlanetWorldCup.com" website. Retrieved on 2 April 2008.] leading to a suggestion of partiality against the European referees.

He officiated at the 1971 League Cup final at Wembley, and had already been given the European Cup final at the same venue, but injuries suffered in a road accident suddenly ended his career before it took place. His position in that European final was taken by Jack Taylor.

He later became an official at Hereford United, and was secretary of Cardiff City. [ [http://www.ynw62.dial.pipex.com/ppoints7.htm Profile] : Richard Whitehead's "Where Are They Now?" football history feature, from Bob Dunning's website. Retrieved on 2 April 2008.] He died in hospital in Hereford on 1 April 2008.

References