What is less true for Smit: he is banned for ‘partisanship’ sidetracked by the KNVB, that no longer uses him in competitions.
“We expect a neutral attitude from a referee and that both teams are treated with respect. This attitude is of course not part of that,” said KNVB spokesperson Daan Schippers about the action.
Smit has to sit on his feet for a year and a half, despite several requests to lift his suspension. But since a few weeks ago he can call himself a referee again.
He no longer feels like looking back. “What happened, happened. I won’t take it back. I don’t justify the things that happened, but at some point you also have to look ahead again.”
Missed hobby
After the suspension, ‘the singing referee’ is booked several times as a guest singer, mainly by football clubs. “I still do that occasionally. Next Sunday I will be at Kwiek’78, in Avenhorn.”
He missed his hobby a lot, he says. “When I went to watch matches, I thought: ‘I could have stood there too’. After good conversations with the KNVB, they gave me the opportunity to be a referee again. I am very happy with that.”