Two S’pore match officials to officiate in India Super League

SINGAPORE — They had previously flown the flag for Singapore when they were chosen to officiate matches at last year’s Asian Cup Finals in Melbourne.

This year, referee Muhammad Taqi Aljaafari and assistant referee Jeffrey Goh have once again been invited to represent the Republic at yet another high-profile football competition: The Hero Indian Super League (ISL).

Both Taqi and Goh will be in India from Dec 7 to 15 to officiate up to four matches in the ISL, which boasts former Premier League stars such as Florent Malouda, John Arne Riise and Didier Zokora. That period coincides with the semi-finals of the tournament.

Taqi, 29, is regarded as one of Singapore’s top young refereeing talents, and has officiated at several notable matches, including the first football match to be played at the National Stadium between Juventus and a Singapore Selection side.

He is also currently one of the candidates in the running to take charge of matches at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Only Shamsul Maidin (2006) and the late George Suppiah (1974) have refereed at the world’s biggest international football tournament.

Goh’s long list of achievements as an assistant referee include being selected to represent Singapore at the 2010 World Cup Finals in South Africa, as well as officiating in two Asian Cup finals.

Football Association of Singapore (FAS) refereeing committee chairman Lim Tong Hai believes both Taqi and Goh will do Singapore proud in India, and says this invitation is an indication of the high calibre of referees in the country.

“Taqi has been doing well, and he has been appointed on several fronts recently, while Jeffrey is a veteran assistant referee, so I’m sure they will add great value in the ISL,” the former national defender told TODAY. “They’ve both officiated at Asian and world-level standards, so their experience would put them in good stead when they head to India and I’m sure they’ll do well there.

“This invitation is massive because there are several top players in the ISL, so for them to invite Singaporean referees to officiate in their games speaks volumes about the quality of our officials.”

Both Taqi and Goh are currently in Bahrain for the Asian Football Confederation Under-19 Championship. When contacted, Taqi directed TODAY to send queries over to the FAS before he could provide a comment. However, the FAS then replied they could not get Taqi’s response as he was “away on official duty”. The FAS were also unable to get a response from Goh.