Jarred Gillett will become the sixth Hyundai A-League referee to officiate 100 matches when he takes charge of this Saturday’s Round 20 blockbuster between Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers at Allianz Stadium.
Based in Brisbane, Gillett made his competition debut in a 0-0 draw between Gold Coast United and Central Coast Mariners in October 2010 and quickly rose to become one of the competition’s most experienced and respected whistle blowers.
In addition to his two Hyundai A-League Grand Finals in 2012 and 2015, Gillett has controlled numerous AFC Champions League and FIFA World Cup qualifying matches since gaining his FIFA badge in 2013.
“Being involved in two Grand Finals have been highlights, but I think I’ll reflect more on those things once my career is over,” Gillett said ahead of his milestone match.
“It’s taken a lot of hard work and dedication to get to this point and I’m still constantly learning and trying to improve as a referee every day. I feel that there’s still a lot of football ahead of me.”
The 29-year-old believes building on the introduction of full-time referees will continue to benefit the individual match officials and the Hyundai A-League.
“The transition to full-time refereeing has been beneficial to my approach to the game,” Gillett said.
“Full-time referees now operate in a high performance environment, very similar to professional sporting teams. It gives us the best chance to be successful every weekend.”
Gillett, who started refereeing as a 12-year-old while playing on the Gold Coast, is also a two-time winner of the Hyundai A-League Referee of the Year award.
