Fairest of them all: Referee Hien wins his second Golden Whistle

(18-09-2008)

HA NOI — HCM City-born Duong Van Hien was presented with a Golden Whistle for his skilful refereeing this year by the Viet Nam Football Federation (VFF).

It was the second year in succession Hien has won the best referee award.

FIFA referee Vo Minh Tri who received the most votes from sport reporters and who is also from HCM City, won the Silver Whistle. The Bronze Whistle went to Hanoian Hoang Anh Tuan.

"The favourable response I’ve received from sports professionals shows that I have done my job well this season," said Hien.

"They know, understand and believed me. Even so I did not think I would win, so it is a very special feeling, better than last year," he said.

"It is difficult to compare the abilities of different referees because a referee could do very well one day and not so well the next. In my job, good and bad means fewer mistakes rather than many. It is a terrific honour to win the title for a second time. It will encourage me to do even better in the future," he said.

Despite a superb season, Tri made several serious mistakes during a match between Thanh Hoa and Hai Phong, which cost him a number of votes.

Meanwhile, newcomer Tuan of Ha Noi had a steady season, which he can be more than proud of.

Awards for referee assistants were also presented yesterday.

Hai Phong’s Pham Manh Long made it a hat trick by winning the Golden Flag for the third straight time – and by a significant margin.

The 32-year-old linesman is highly respected by players and officials for his sound knowledge of the game and good judgement.

The Silver Flag went to Nguyen Hoang Minh, who was a surprise winner. Minh, who came fourth last year, narrowly beat last year’s first runner-up Nguyen Truong Xuan by just 15 votes.

Also yesterday, Almeida of V-League side SHB Da Nang, who scored 23 goals, won the top-scorer award. The First Division award went to Flavio da Silva of Huda Hue, who scored 18 goals.

Football has become an indispensable part of life for many Vietnamese. Last season, V-League average attendance stood at 7,300 per game.

About 480 goals were scored in the V-League – an average of 2.53 goals each match. There were 460 goals scored in the first Division.

However, last season also saw an increase in hooliganism. In one incident a fan was killed and many others injured.

The VFF condemned the violence and took measures to step-up security at games. — VNS