Ray Olivier

infobox football official
name = Ray Olivier


fullname = Raymond J Olivier
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1958|9|21
cityofbirth = Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands
countryofbirth = England
dateofdeath =
cityofdeath =
countryofdeath =
otheroccupation =
years = 1993-1996
1996-1998
1998-2007
league = Football League
Premier League
Football League
role = Assistant referee
Assistant referee
Referee
internationalyears = -
confederation = -
internationalrole = -

Raymond J. Olivier (born September 21 1958) is an English former football referee, who operated in the Football League in that capacity, and in the Premier League as an assistant referee. He comes from Sutton Coldfield [ [http://www.bbc.co.uk/survey/netpromoter/redir.shtml?survey=no&url=/news/sport1/hi/football/eng_div_2/3205297.stm Confirmation of place of residence] : BBC.co.uk match report, 2003.] in the West Midlands.

Career

He began refereeing in 1980 in leagues local to his home, becoming an assistant referee in the Football League in 1993. Three years later he progressed to the Premier League list of assistants, finally being elevated to Football League referee in 1998. [http://www.football-league.premiumtv.co.uk/page/RefereeProfilesDetail/0,,10794~628215,00.html Profile and birthdate confirmation] : the Football League Official website.]

His first match in charge after his promotion was the Football League Third Division (now League Two) encounter between Exeter City and Scarborough at St James Park Exeter on August 15 1998, which finished 1-0 to the home side courtesy of a goal by Jon Gittens. [ [http://www.soccerbase.com/results3.sd?gameid=251348 First ever Football League match] , Exeter v. Scarborough, 1998: soccerbase.com website.] In 2001, he refereed an FA Trophy semi-final.

Although never to officiate as a referee in the Premier League, on September 1 2001 Olivier was appointed as a Regional Refereeing Manager for the Football Association, [ [http://ratetheref.co.uk/editorial/EnglishAddresses.htm Admin role for Olivier] , commencing September 1 2001: list of contacts at the "RateTheRef.co.uk" website.] covering the West Midlands area. [ [http://www.thefa.com/GrassrootsNew/Referee/FAMOA/Postings/2006/06/12013 Regional Refereeing Manager] , West Midlands: TheFA.com Official website.] He continued to referee at Football League level whilst holding this position.

In January 2006, he and Peter Walton, the Premiership referee, held a seminar on refereeing development in Guayaquil, Ecuador, for the country's senior referees, following a cooperative agreement which had been signed in 2003 by Nicolás Léoz (president of CONMEBOL), and the chairman of the FA, Geoff Thompson. [ [http://www.thefa.com/TheFA/InternationalRelations/NewsAndFeatures/Postings/2007/01/OlivierWalton.htm Seminar for referees in Ecuador] , with Peter Walton, January 2006: TheFA.com Official website.]

On October 28 2006, after 33 minutes of a Notts County versus Bury Football League Two match, [ [http://www.soccerbase.com/results3.sd?gameid=500161 Notts County v. Bury] , taken ill in 2006: soccerbase.com website.] he was taken ill with a mild stroke, and had to be replaced by the fourth official, Jock Waugh. [ [http://archive.thisislancashire.co.uk/2006/11/2/940520.html "Ref on road to recovery"] : account of his mild stroke at the "ThisIsLancashire.co.uk" website.] He was unable to referee again until Boxing Day of that year. [ [http://www.soccerbase.com/results3.sd?gameid=505313 Return to fitness] for Boxing Day 2006 match: soccerbase.com website.]

In January 2007, Olivier and Walton returned to the Ecuadorian city of Guayaquil in order to carry out an "Advanced Course for Referees' Instructors", on behalf of the Football Association and the Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol (South American Football Confederation). [ [http://www.conmebol.com/comunicados_ver.jsp?id=60211&slangab=E Return to Ecuador] with Walton in 2007 for an "Advanced Course for Referees' Instructors": CONMEBOL website.]

Ray Olivier retired from refereeing in his 49th year, handling his final match on April 24 2007 - the 1-0 win by Bristol Rovers at Macclesfield Town in a League Two fixture. [ [http://www.soccerbase.com/results3.sd?gameid=515094 Last ever top class match] before retirement in 2007: soccerbase.com website.]

He did not rest, and on May 5 2007 assisted the FA's Head of National Referee Development, Ian Blanchard in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, helping to run a "Referee Recruiter Course" for the Asian Football Confederation. [ [http://footballreferee.org/refreenews_detail.php?nid=128 Course in Kuala Lumpur] , with Ian Blanchard in May 2007, for the Asian Football Confederation: article at the "FootballReferee.org" website.]

References

External links

* [http://www.soccerbase.com/refs2.sd?refid=244 Ray Olivier Referee Statistics] at soccerbase.com