Unappreciated, ignored, insulted, pillared by fans and managers alike, not to mention the players. What exactly is it that leads grown men to want to place themselves in the cauldron of hatred that is match officialdom?

The Premier League announced this morning that, at 25, Stuart Attwell, will become the youngest ever top-level referee, having been fast-tracked through the system since starting out on a long road of abuse back in 1998.

Fair play to the lad, but if he wanted a job surrounded by miserable people offering dirty looks surely he could have just applied for one of the passport control posts at Gatwick?

Attwell represents that sole kid in every school who was never that bothered about playing, but would gladly chase around the playground barking instructions and halting play without ever getting within two metres of the ball. You're left wondering if they might have been bullied or suppressed in a past life, and want nothing more than to exact revenge? Fair enough, but why dish it out on our beautiful game?!

Referees are indeed a different breed, but maybe they do deserve a bit more support and understanding,

True, they may wear black as a deep metaphorical reflection of their dead souls, but these guys are still human, so let's genuinely hope that Attwell gets off to a good start in his first Premier League match. And we pray to God the guy has a sense of humour, because he'll need one with all the 'get back to school' jibes that will surely confront him throughout the month of August.