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#Post#: 21695--------------------------------------------------
David Smith - Obituary
DIR By: John Treleven
Date: October 6, 2020, 4:29 pm
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Stroud News
1st December 2010
Former referee D.W. Smith dies aged 84
By Crispin Northey
David Smith, better known as Football League and FIFA referee
D.W. Smith, has died at the age of 84.
David, of Melbourne Drive, Stonehouse, will be best remembered
as the referee for the centenary 1972 F.A. Cup Final between
Leeds and Arsenal.
Born in Barnet, where he first got the football bug, David
served as a football league referee from 1959 to 1974 and as a
FIFA referee from 1968 to 1974.
His final match at the very top was the infamous Manchester
derby on 27th April1974 , when after Dennis Law had back-heeled
the ball into the United net to put City one up and the
certainty that United would be relegated, with eight minutes
left before the end of the game home fans spilled on to the
pitch.
David took all the players off and when he brought them back
again a hail of missiles followed and despite Sir Matt Busby’s
appeals, the fans came on again.
Back in the dressing room, Smith abandoned the game once he
heard that other results meant United would go down anyway, and
the result was allowed to stand.
It was a sad end to his long career but he will always be
remembered for his no-nonsense style of officiating and being
clearly identified at matches with his blonde hair and trademark
white handkerchief sticking out of his back pocket.
Calling many a player to him after some indiscretion on the
field, they immediately thought that their name was to be taken
when David went to his pocket, only for him to pull out the
hanky and wipe his nose.
Besides his service to refereeing, not only as an active referee
but assessor and mentor, he spent many years in the service of
his beloved Gloucestershire F.A. as an administrator and
secretary for the Stroud & District League.
David is survived by his wife Ann, with whom he celebrated his
65th wedding anniversary on 10th November, and his son Terry.
#Post#: 21697--------------------------------------------------
Re: David Smith - Obituary
DIR By: John Treleven
Date: October 7, 2020, 12:14 am
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At 65 years David Smith is probably the longest married referee
With his birth registered in Q4 1926 he was 19, or just 20 when
he married on 10th November 1945
His wife (nee Smith !) was about 18 months older than him
#Post#: 21724--------------------------------------------------
Re: David Smith - Obituary
DIR By: reflector
Date: October 7, 2020, 5:22 pm
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A very good referee who used to get many top First Division
appointments in his 15 years on the national list. By
profession he was an overhead linesman with the then Midlands
Electricity Board so in addition to reaching the heights in his
career as a football linesman and referee, he also did the same
in his day job!
He was based in Stonehouse, a small town in Gloucestershire,
which had the distinction of having a second leading League
referee at about the same time in Brian Srevens - I suppose
making it the Tring of its day.
#Post#: 21725--------------------------------------------------
Re: David Smith - Obituary
DIR By: John Treleven
Date: October 8, 2020, 2:31 am
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Non F.L. places with two or more F.L. referees in the same
season (up to 1968-69)
Pre WWI - Altrincham, Brockley (Lewisham), Kettering, Leek,
Wednesbury
Inter War - Altrincham, Ashton under Lyne, Birkenhead, East Ham,
Forest Gate, Harlesden, Histon, llford, Kidderminster, Long
Eaton, Newton Le Willows, Northwich, Palmers Green, Putney,
Tamworth, Willenhall, Willesden
Post WW2 (to 1968-69) - Bath, Cheadle, Great Yarmouth,
Lowestoft, Morecambe, Pontefract, Thornton Heath, Worcester
(generally overlapping for one season only, the exceptions being
Great Yarmouth, Pontefract and Worcester)
Overall the leaders by some way are Sheffield -
Pre WWI - 19
Inter War - 17
Post War (to 1968-69) - 11
#Post#: 21741--------------------------------------------------
Re: David Smith - Obituary
DIR By: reflector
Date: October 9, 2020, 3:01 am
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Thank you JT - that's far more than I ever imagined.
#Post#: 21765--------------------------------------------------
Re: David Smith - Obituary
DIR By: Acme Thunderer
Date: October 10, 2020, 5:17 am
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Thank you JT. 'Thornton Heath' - my old neck of the woods. I
think W (Bill) Dellow was actually from the Thornton Heath area
although he is shown as 'Croydon'. A good man and very active in
local refereeing circles when I first took up the whistle. 7
consecutive seasons as a supplementary (before my time), surely
some kind of record. W Ross-Gower (1939/47) is shown as from
'Norbury' which is next door to TH, and is one of a number of
Ross-Gowers who were very involved in refereeing matters in the
area over the years. I was a bit surprised not to see my adopted
home town of Crewe on the list with two or more refs, but then I
noted that it stops at 1968/9, and the Crewe contingent took
shape in the 1970s; also Kendal had a good number of FL refs for
a town of its size but not before the 1970s. Some towns go
together, for example Thornton Heath and Norbury, Crewe and
Nantwich (Neville Ashley), but Roy Capey is shown in Upton's as
from 'Madeley Heath, Crewe' which is in fact in a different
county (Staffs) to Crewe (Cheshire), such are the borders
between the two. Thanks again JT, v informative.
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