HE’S been a mainstay of the Illawarra refereeing ranks but veteran whistle-blower Andrew Riolo never had designs on officiating 400 first grade games.
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That’s the milestone he will notch on Saturday when he oversees the much anticipated clash between Wests and Thirroul at Parrish Park.
It will come 35 years after his first grade debut and, after breaking previous leader Alan Sercome’s mark of 294 in 2000, will set a new mark unlikely to be matched.
Having grown up watching father Kevin, a prominent referee throughout the 1970s, picking up the whistle was a natural progression.
“He was a big influence, obviously going to the football as a child and watching him referee and he was pretty successful as a referee,” Riolo said.
“I played football myself but I just took up the whistle because it was expected. A lot of his friends were referees and it was just natural to take it up.”
Those bloodline continue with Andrew’s son Blake a young referee on the rise who will run the line at Parrish on Saturday.
“It’s great to see him going well and he enjoys it so to see that third generation is great.”
It’s a resume that includes 22 CRL representative appointments and five Illawarra league grand finals, the first in 1992 remaining the highlight.
“Probably the first one in 1992 Wollongong Uni versus Dapto stand out,” Riolo said.
“That was my first year in first grade and I ended up getting the grand final so that stands out as the main one for me but all my games are important to to me and they all stand out.”
In more than three decades, Riolo has inevitably come across some characters in the Illawarra league, some who stand out more than others,
“Blokes like [Thirroul’s] Aaron Beath, he’s playing this week, who are long-term players stand out,” Riolo
“I always have a bit of a joke with him. Buster [Greg] Reh’s another one I’ve refereed him for a long time.
“Guys like that stand out because they’re good on and off the field. They might have a go at you on the field but you have a beer after it’s all forgotten.”
Having knocked off defending premiers Dapto last week, Thirroul can sound a warning to the competition against last year’s grand finalists on their patch.
Competition leaders Wests will also be looking to claim a vital two points and Riolo said his approach will be the same as his previous 399 matches.
“Each week I just go out there try to not blow too many penalties, let the game flow, keep a good 10 [metres] and open the game up and hopefully the best team wins on the day,” he said.\
The match will also likely be his swansong though the whistle won’t get hung up completely.
“This’ll be last first grade game I would think,” he said.
“We’ve got seven or eight guys who can do first grade now who are a lot younger so it’s best that I step aside I think.
“I’ll probably keep doing some Shield games and some lower grades.”