WORCESTER Cathedral will be the venue for the funeral of former Premiership and FIFA referee Gerald Ashby.

The service will be held on Friday, December 28, at 2pm, followed by cremation. Many top soccer officials and referees are expected to attend.

Mr Ashby, who rose from Worcester parks football to the top level and took charge of the 1995 FA Cup final, died suddenly last weekend, aged 52.

He had been a Premiership referees' assessor since retiring from the list in 1998. He had also recently been nominated for a role as a UEFA match delegate.