Play nzherald.co.nz's rugby Pick the Score competition - go to:
pickthescore.nzherald.co.nz
KEY POINTS:
Family and work commitments could force top New Zealand referee Peter O'Leary to give up his dream of refereeing matches at the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa.
His future on the Hyundai A-League panel is also up in the air.
O'Leary, 36, will be at Newtown Park on Sunday to control the New Zealand Football Championship clash between Team Wellington, who must win to keep faltering play-off hopes alive, and Canterbury United, but his ongoing future outside the domestic game is uncertain.
"I'm keen to carry on as much as I can," said O'Leary, who has officiated at the past two Fifa Club World Cups in Japan and was on the referees' panel at the 2007 Fifa Under-20 World Cup in Canada. "But in the end it comes down to who pays the bills."
The head of biology at Hamilton's Hillcrest High School, O'Leary is under some pressure.
"I can understand the school's attitude. As a head of department there are added responsibilities and a heavier workload. From a family point of view I have a 2-year-old son and another baby on the way."
Still available, if needed, for the current A-League play-offs, O'Leary said he would need to sit down with the school before accepting a contract for another A-League season if one was offered.
"Before I re-signed with the A-League I would have to discuss the situation at school and be assured I would not be disadvantaged in signing for another season.
"I would need to go to them and say, 'This is what I have been offered' and take it from there."
While getting time to referee at the World Cup would not in itself be a problem - he would be seen as representing New Zealand at international level and therefore entitled to four weeks' leave - the time involved in the lead-up could be.
He is already committed to a week-long seminar in South Africa in June where all potential World Cup officials will be put through their paces. Beyond that he is not so sure, but is aware there will be ongoing courses as the list of potential World Cup officials is trimmed.
While one-off internationals in Oceania are manageable - O'Leary was in Fiji last weekend for an O-League match - he is not so sure about any likely involvement with the ever-growing fixture list in Asia where neutral referees are often called upon.
"Again, that is something I would need to sit down and discuss with the school," he said. "They have been very good to me in the past but it is more of a problem looking forward. I can understand that."
He insists weekend trips around New Zealand for NZFC matches are "not a problem" but other calls on his time could become an issue.
The return of highly regarded Auckland referee Kevin Stoltenkamp from injury will be welcomed by refereeing bosses. He will be in Palmerston North tomorrow for the match between YoungHeart Manawatu and Auckland City and is likely to figure, along with O'Leary, Michael Hester and Chris Kerr in the NZFC play-offs.
