VETERAN referee Phil Thompson has blown the whistle on his refereeing career after 34 years.

The managing director of local security company, Key Control Services Limited, on Manchester Road, Bolton, has decided to hang up his boots and whistle after the latest in a series of knee injuries.

He has had 12 knee operations during his lifetime of playing and officiating a range of sports.

The 64-year-old, who donated a number of pairs of boots to the charity Team Rhino in Gambia on his retirement, had previously been a player-manager and then full-time manager in a local football league before he decided to become a referee because there were so few of them at the time.

He quickly rose to officiating semi-professionally but refereeing had to take a back seat due to his commitments as a police officer.

The Bury man continued to referee in local amateur leagues and is a former president and twice chairman of Bury Referees’ Society and was previously a member of Manchester Referees’ Society for many years.

“When I was a manager I was always disappointed with the standard of refereeing, so I decided to take it up,” he said.

“When I first started refereeing I’d already been in the police for 13 years, so I was used to being abused by the public,” he joked.

“So putting up with abuse from 22 pussy cats on a football pitch was nothing in comparison.

“I’ve really enjoyed being a referee, both in the professional and amateur leagues.

"I always thought I was doing my bit to bring the standard of refereeing up and I’ve tried via various committees I’ve sat on to encourage other people to get involved in refereeing in local amateur football leagues.”