25 Jul KO:17:00League 1Rd: 16
Oxford RLFC v Barrow Raiders
The Prince of Wales Stadium
Referee: J Roberts
Reserve: B Scott
Touch Judge: N Walker
Touch Judge: L MacDonald
Match Commissioner: G Kershaw

Gerry Kershaw of course, the former referee of some renown and I believe head Match Commissioner. He was also Match Commissioner for the first ever game at Iffley Road.

Referee Jonathan Roberts (Leeds). First season refereeing at this level. Previous Oxford games were both at the start of this season:
07/02/2015 (warm-up match) - Dewsbury reserves 40 Oxford 18 (penalties 9-5 against Oxford)
28/02/2015 (League 1 Cup) - Oxford 20 Newcastle 56 (penalties 9-5 in favour)

Touch Judge - Nathan Walker (Dewsbury and Batley). Has been touch judge a few times, most recently the defeat to Swinton in our "home" game that was played 40 miles away from Oxford (as the crow flies) in front of 11 paying Oxford fans.

Touch Judge - Lee MacDonald (Cumbria). From Workington. First game at this level as a touch judge was two weeks ago. Does judo.
Reserve referee - Bryan Scott (Cumbria). From Workington. First game at this level as a touch judge was two weeks ago. Supports St Helen's.
We rarely have officials from Cumbria so nice of the RFL to find a couple for a match against Barrow.

Match Commissioner - Gerry Kershaw. As DarkBlue Rover says, has been match commissioner for a number of Oxford games, the last one being the match at Newcastle this season. He is a former top flight referee from the 1970s through to early 90s, including the 1981 Challenge Cup Final. Was video ref in the 2000 World Cup Final and the 2002 Grand Final. Now he is the head of match commissioners. Also notable for being attacked by a female Warrington fan after refereeing a game there (she was arrested and fined).


Worthy of note: officials for the preceding match All Golds v Skolars:
Referee: Adam Gill
Reserve: L MacDonald
Touch Judge: C Etchells
Touch Judge: B Scott
Match Commissioner: A Barnby

So the two from Cumbria get a double-shift.
Andy Barnby is the match commissioner who walked onto the pitch in our home game against York to tell the ref to stop the clock following a brawl.

Roberts was also the touch judge who became the ref when Phil Bentham got injured earlier in the season in the Challenge Cup. Hudds vs. Leeds I think it was.

As noted on Facebook, the match commissioners for the two games have swapped. So either Andy Barnby wanted a lie-in, or Gerry Kershaw didn't fancy a late night.

Nothing much to add about Andy Barnby, except that we saw him regularly in 2014 but this is only the second time this season.

Andy is local (Lydney I think) so probably made sense as he has the shorter trip home.