Referee Ganson to hang up his whistle

Ganson, 43, has been appointed as match officials coach and technical director, taking over from former Huddersfield coach Jon Sharp, who will now head up the match officials department.

The appointments plug the gap created by the recent departure of Stuart Cummings.

Ganson, who made his senior debut as a referee in 1995 and is the sport’s most experienced official at club and international level, will start his new role on Monday.

“I have been very fortunate to have enjoyed the career I have,” Ganson said. “The last 23 years have taken me on a fantastic journey and given me experiences I’ll never forget.

“This move has all come about very quickly but opportunities like this don’t come along very often and I’m really excited to make the move into coaching.

“I feel the time is right and, whilst I know I’m going to miss refereeing, there are no regrets, just a genuine sense of anticipation at what lies ahead.”

RFL director of standards and licensing Blake Solly said: “On behalf of everyone in the game I would like to thank Steve for the significant contribution he made during his 23-year career as a referee.

“Steve has officiated at the highest level and I can think of no-one better equipped to succeed in his new role than him.”