Brady puts refs under spotlight

LIAM BRADY has sent out a strong message about the importance of top-class refereeing in the World Cup play-off against France.

More than most, the Ireland assistant manager has reason to bemoan the vagaries of officialdom, having himself been a member of a succession of Irish sides which were on the wrong end of some terrible refereeing decisions in the 70s and 80s.

Add in FIFA’s evident desire to see as many of world football’s marquee names as possible in action in South Africa next summer, and you can understand why Brady was at pains yesterday to put the role of the German match officials for tomorrow and the Swedish officials for Wednesday firmly under the spotlight.