Brian Crowe is an army man who is currently one of the best referees the GAA can count upon to keep the peace when war threatens to break out. Last year's All-Ireland SFC final being a case in point. When one considers that the top referees in the Premiership get over a couple of grand for their 90 minutes work, it brings home the realisation that Brian Crowe and his ilk come very cheap. Mileage, a meal and a souvenir of the day is all the Cavan Gaels clubman most likely received for parading his wisdom, man-management skills, vision and judgement in front of an audience of 80,000-plus spectators and a t.v. audience in excess of 1,000,000 last September. Would you put yourself through such an examination? How many people would have the guts to do it? Understandably, Cavan's most experienced referee fingers last year's All-Ireland SFC final as the most memorable game of football he's ever taken care of, ever been present at really. For the men in black, acting as the main man on the biggest day in Irish sport is the ultimate experience and one to be treasured. After years holding the fort between sometimes warring parties, Brian got his due reward when he was handed the task of officiating at the Kerry versus Mayo blue riband decider. Reflecting back on that glorious occasion, the Defence Forces employee has a clear memory of the biggest day in his sporting career to date. He confesses to having thoroughly enjoyed the occasion and, rather than having a bleary recollection of proceedings under what was a massive spotlight, has a crystal clear memory of what transpired. Asked to split hairs, Brian Crowe says maybe the game could have eased the crowd that bit closer to the edge of their seats. It was a tad lop-sided for some extended periods. But that's nit-picking taken to its extreme, he maintains, and the quality of Kerry's play, in particular, at various junctures, should not be underminded, he suggests. Overall, Brian says he would rewind the tape of the 2006 All-Ireland SFC final clash between Kerry and Mayo and edit nothing. For the game's principal man in black, it was an experience that he'll never forget but one also - surprise, surprise - that he wouldn't mind repeating! Like everyone else in the country bar the know-it-alls among us, Brian felt, in the run-up to last year's blue riband decide, that it was going to be a "far tighter match." The game was a procession in the early stages with the Munster men going about their opponents with a ball and chain and wreaking havoc everytime they sped into Mayo's half of the field. Brian says he was taken aback by the one-sided nature of the contest during the early part of the first half but he still felt that the squeeze would come on Kerry after half-time. Mayo had sparked into life just before half-time but slowly but sure the fire in their bellies fizzled out and the Kingdom were left to stroll home and leave the pre-match script well and truly in tact. Recalling his magical day at Croke Park, Brian salutes the part played by his long-time assistants, Jimmy Galligan, John Sheridan, Michael Lyons and Phil Devine. Perhaps the best team on the day? "That's for others to say but we have always worked well and I think, between us, we did a good enough job," says Brian who cites introducing the President Mary McAleese to his back-up as a stand-out moment of the day. Our man Crowe made his first All-Ireland senior final bow last Autumn and was certainly a safe pair of hands. Fact is, he's a vastly experienced ref and has been one of the top whistlers in the country for several years now. Indeed his handling of last year's championship decider fairly mirrored his standing among his peers. But what about the 'oul nerves while ensconced in the bowels of the biggest stadium in the country with the breath of some 80,000 people lifting the hairs upright on the back of his neck as throw-in time loomed? "Definitely while I was waiting for the knock on the door to prepare to leave for the pitch, the adrenaline started pumping and you notice that all sorts of people are getting ready to take up their positions. "For the 15 or 20 minutes before the match got underway, it was an anxious time in the dressing-room but you remind the lads (umpires) to concentrate on the first 35 minutes. "We'd regroup at half-time, gather our thoughts and go out again and do our best for the second half - just as if it was just another game, even though we all know it isn't." Brian points out that it is extremely important that a referee approaches each game with the same professional approach otherwise a body is asking for trouble and you don't want trouble on All-Ireland finals day! He explains that the rules of Gaelic football are constant and don't alter from one game to the next no matter how one-sided the game may evolve as with the 2006 blue riband championship decider. Taking control of the Kerry versus Mayo game catapulted the Cavan Gaels clubman into the pantheon of referees from Cavan who have distuinguished themselves on the biggest stage of all. Of course hindsight is a great gift but certainly after his handling of the Dublin v Laois Leinster semi-final last Summer and the subsequent All-Ireland quarter final between Dublin and Westmeath, the smart money was plied on Crowe getting the plum job although county colleague Joe McQuillan (Kill Shamrocks) was well in the running too. Along with Fintan Tierney, Micheal Greenan, Tomas McDermott and more recently Joe McQuillan, the Cavan-town based husband and father has flown the flag for Cavan on the biggest stages in the country. He has garnered a lot of admirers in the world of Gaelic games as the man who invariably keeps the peace, calls the shots and marshalls the flow of play in a quiet, unnasuming manner. With a c.v which boasts of senior championship games in Ulster, Munster and Leinster and two AIB All-Ireland club deciders, Brian fairly enhanced his profile and reputation, illiciting positive reviews from players, fans, peers and press alike. Thankfully Brian's mettle wasn't tested too rigourously by the Kerry or Mayo players in Ireland's biggest sporting occasion last year but had he any worries or concerns that sparks may have ignited a blazing row? "Because it was such a one-sided contest for long periods, the only thing I was worried about was the possibility that some of the Mayo players would get very frustrated and lose their discipline. "At times when one team is completely on top for so long, you have to be really on your toes and, if an incidence arises, get in there fast and get order restored and there were a couple of times when I had to do that." Throughout all his trials, tribulations and triumphs as a whistler, Brian has been steadfastly supported by his wife and children and he says he will be eternally grateful for their 100% backing down the years. The amount of high-profile matches Brian has taken charge of to date says volumes for the respect and esteem he is held in by the mandarins at provincial and national levels. Provincial, college, club and inter-county finals colour his c.v. now like confetti outside the church on the day of wedding in times past. Strangely, he doesn't consider that - as far as the bigger stage is concerned - he'll hang around too much longer. The next two or three years may see him exit stage right from the biggest stages. "I still enjoy refereeing as much now as I did when I first took it up," Brian explains. "But when or if the day comes along when I don't enjoy refereeing, I'll call it quits." A whole host of players, mentors, fans and administrators will be hoping that he hangs around for a lot of years to come yet. Tweet

Most Read Stories