Football Queensland’s (FQ) Referee Exchange Program continues to demonstrate its success in supporting the development of regional referees through the recent appointments of regional match officials to top-tier competitions and finals, reaffirming FQ’s commitment to excellence across all aspects of the game.
The Referee Exchange Program is an initiative designed to broaden opportunities for regional referees by providing access to top-tier football cups and competitions, aligning with FQ’s 2024-2026 Referee Strategy’s objective to strengthen development pathways, advance refereeing standards, and offer equal access to opportunities for referees across the state.
Exposure to high level competitions such as the Mitre FQPL Champions League and Kappa Queensland Cup is crucial for the continued development of regional referees, as these opportunities provide invaluable professional experiences and present new officiating challenges beyond what they typically encounter in their own regions, helping them to refine their skills and elevate their officiating.
“The FQ Referee Exchange Program’s ongoing success is exemplified by the appointment of all regional referee teams representing every region from Wide Bay up to the Far North & Gulf region for the Mitre FQPL Champions League Regional Finals and Kappa Queensland Cup Women’s Final, including Nefertiti Kurzelewska (Far North & Gulf) and Violette Matthews (Whitsunday Coast),” Manager – Referee Development Mark Simon-Green said.
“The Kappa Queensland Cup, celebrating its inaugural women’s final, provided a perfect opportunity to honour our top regional referees, such as Nefertiti and Violette, for their outstanding performances while motivating and challenging them to further refine and advance their officiating skills.
“By spotlighting current FQ Academy and aspiring academy referees and consistently assigning regional officials to high-level finals through this program, we aim to demonstrate that a pathway for professional growth and achievement exists, regardless of one’s location within the state.”
Kurzelewska and Matthews both expressed their enthusiasm and gratitude for being selected to represent their regions in the Kappa Queensland Cup Final, sharing it felt like an opportunity to grow and a huge accomplishment seeing their hard work over the past season being recognised.
“This experience really influences my approach to officiating as it reassures me that my hard work can pay off, therefore it increases my motivation to continue refereeing at my very best,” Matthews said.
“The teams’ performances were quite eye opening as this was a whole new level of football and this impacted the match environment quite positively for me, improving my performance, and the intensity and fire that the players came out with at the start was most rewarding for me as an assistant referee as it was a ‘Wow I’ve made it this far’ moment.”
“The experience of making critical decisions under pressure helped to refine my judgment and decision-making skills, giving me have clearer understanding of how to handle similar situations in the future,” Kurzelewska said.
“It was rewarding to watch players just focus on playing, and to know that I was giving them advantages and avoiding unnecessary stoppages allowing each team a fair chance to play the game.
“Knowing I successfully handled a high-level match like the Kappa Queensland Cup Final has greatly boosted my confidence.”
Mitre FQPL Champions League Regional Final – Women
Referee – Nefertiti Kurzelewska (Far North & Gulf)
Assistant Referee – Violette Matthews (Whitsunday Coast)
Assistant Referee – Abigail Cunsamy (Far North & Gulf)
4th Official – Willow Gaffney (Whitsunday Coast)
Mitre FQPL Champions League Regional Final – Men
Referee – Adam Treloar (Northern)
Assistant Referee – Bailey Love (Central Coast)
Assistant Referee – David Dogao (Whitsunday Coast)
4th Official – Cody Schiemann (Wide Bay)
Kappa Queensland Cup Final – Women
Referee – Nefertiti Kurzelewska (Far North & Gulf)
Assistant Referee – Violette Matthews (Whitsunday Coast)
