Canterbury Referees Association (CRA)
Established – 1925
Current members – 440
Notable members – Keith Andreason* (CDSFA Life Member), Ron Piper* (CDSFA Life Member), Harry Friday* (CDSFA Life Member), Joseph Kuchappan* (CDSFA Life Member), Cecil (Cec) Gordon Barlow* (CDFSFA Life Member), Jack Payne* (CDSFA Life Member), Albert Harvey* (CDSFA Life Member), Peter Corben (CDSFA Life Member), Brett Hugo (former FIFA referee), Emmanouel Loupis (former FIFA referee).
It is understood that the Canterbury Referees Association (CRA) was established in 1925, only two years after the establishment of the Canterbury & District Soccer Football Association in 1923.
This is clearly identified in the CRA’s historical logo which is still used to this day.
Started by a small group of volunteers with strong football roots, the CRA was formed to provide football referees at CDSFA competition fixtures. It has continued to provide football referees to CDSFA fixtures since inception, only pausing during World War II from 1939-1945.
For several decades, the organisation was known as the Canterbury & District Soccer Referees Association (CDSRA), but in 2016 it elected to revert back to its original name of Canterbury Referees Association (CRA) to maintain its heritage.
The CRA works hand-in-hand with the CDSFA, servicing the football community with match officials for all fixtures in the under-10 and above age groups and divisions.
Since establishment, the CRA has recruited and trained thousands of match officials who give up their weekends officiating in local competitions.
One of its finest members, Brett Hugo, was honoured with a FIFA badge in 2000 after several years officiating in the Australian A-league. In 2021, the CRA increased its membership to 440 members, with a combination of juniors and seniors, both male and female.
Today, two of the CRA’s finest female members, Maggie Price and Madelaine Allum are on the A-League Women’s match official panel. Several CRA members also officiate in the NSW Premier Leagues competitions, while other junior members represent the branch on the Referees Development Panel (RDP).
