Matt leaves Greswell to become Football League referee

Greswell Primary School teacher Matt Donohue has left the school after eight years’ service to pursue his dream of becoming a full-time referee in the Football League.

The decision to leave Greswell follows Matt’s promotion to the Select Group 2 of Referees for the forthcoming season.

It means he can now officiate fixtures in all three tiers of the EFL - The Championship, League One and Two.

Matt began his career with the Manchester FA and has since progressed through the various levels to reach his current status. He officiated in the National League - previously known as the Conference - before securing promotion to the Football League in July 2018. Having impressed with the whistle last season, in which he officiated 30 games in League One and Two, Matt was rewarded with the League Two play-off semi-final between Newport County and Mansfield Town at Rodney Parade in April. He also took charge of two FA Cup fixtures - Met Police v Newport County, and Swindon Town v Woking - as well as five games in the EFL Trophy.

Despite landing his dream job, Matt spoke to Reporter Sport and said it was a tough decision to leave Greswell - especially after playing a major part in developing the school’s sports section. “It’s been eight fantastic years at Greswell, and hopefully I’ll be remembered for the sporting side of things that I’ve achieved.

“We’ve made major strides over the last few years in terms of what we’ve been doing, with our engagement and participation with children at all different abilities and ages. We’ve had some great success in competitions as well, and from that perspective I’ve loved every minute of it.

“However, I’ve been offered a contract to referee in the Football League, so that will become my job. I’ll referee Championship, League One and Two fixtures. It’s going to be a great challenge and I’m really looking forward to that. It’s a massive passion and a dream of mine, and it’s great that I’ve had the opportunity to live that dream. To a large extent I’ve already lived that dream, but it’s a privilege and something I’m looking forward to.”

During his time in Denton, Matt, who originally hails from Essex, has driven the school forward when it comes to sporting opportunities. Pupils have competed in a variety of sports at regular competitions, including basketball, hockey, football and netball. The school has also represented the borough at the Greater Manchester School Games on a number of occasions, and both the boys and girls’ cricket team have been crowned Tameside Cricket Champions this year.

Such has been his commitment to the cause, Matt’s efforts were rewarded with the Commitment to PE and Sport Award at the Inspire Tameside Awards earlier this month. He said it was an honour to receive the award on behalf of the school, but hailed the efforts of everyone who made it possible. “There were some really nice things said by John Cooper, the headteacher, along with Ryan Bardsley from St John Fisher Primary School. It’s nice to be recognised for the hard work over a number of years, because it has been hard work and it’s hard getting teams out. There are pe coordinators all over Tameside who do a great job - if not better than myself - in terms of getting children to events. Many people deserved that award but it was a real privilege and an honour to receive it on the day.

“The backing of John and his leadership team has been absolutely vital. They want to push it forward for the school, but in doing so there are consequence for the school in terms of allowing people to run things and the time that occupies. They’ve backed it 100 per cent.

“Dave Noble was here for five years and he was a real credit to the school. He’s renowned for the coaching he does in Tameside, and we recently had Joe Bevan in to do some coaching. He will hopefully continue the work next year as well. Without all the components of the team - the children, the parents and the teachers - we wouldn’t have achieved half of what we’ve done.

“If we didn’t have the backing of John, the governors and the leadership to do that, it just wouldn’t happen.”