#FeaturedAppointments
Our headline this week is the semi-final of the #FASundayCup 🏆️
Best of luck to all officials this weekend! 🙌
This weeks featured appointments are powered by @TheRefStop
Darren Cann officiates his final professional match this weekend when Manchester City take on Crystal Palace. Absolute legend of an assistant referee, a byword for sustained excellence, a role model for younger officials, and totally devoid of ego. Cann has just loved serving the game and doing it superbly. Ironic that the weekend that semi-automated offside technology comes into the Premier League that the assistant ref who invariably got offside calls right bows out.
What a career! Longevity and consistency. Saturday will be Cann’s 579th and final appearance in the Premier League. He was a promising youth-team winger at Norwich and Palace before becoming a ref, and maybe that playing experience gave him that extra insight and expertise that made him such a respected official by managers and players.
Cann has overseen more than 1,000 professional matches domestically and on the international stage, including the World Cups in South Africa and Brazil and Euro 2008. Most notable games came in 2010 when he ran the line in the Champions League final between Inter and Bayern and then the World Cup final between Spain and the Netherlands.
“Officiating the World Cup final and the Champions League final are memories I will cherish forever but, above all, I’m proud of the fact I’ve given 100% in every single match throughout my career,” Cann says. “It’s been the privilege of my life to serve the game that I love.” Cann’s presence on the touchline will be greatly missed. Let’s hope all that ability and experience is not lost to the game and a hugely popular figure is involved in PGMOL in some capacity or training up younger officials.