Roberto Howard Elevated to CA Umpire Panel

Cricket Australia have announced a consolidated Contracted Umpire Panel for the 2024-25 season, with NSWCUSA member Roberto Howard receiving a national contract for the first time.

The elevation for Howard comes after six seasons as a member of the NSW State Umpire Panel, during which time he has built considerable experience in domestic competitions, overseeing 34 WBBL matches, eight Men’s Second XI matches and five WNCL fixtures.

NSW State Umpiring Manager Darren Goodger congratulated Howard on being contracted for the first time, “We are delighted by the elevation of Roberto Howard to the Cricket Australia Contracted Umpire Panel.

“Roberto has been patient, humble, worked hard and performed consistently well in recent seasons. He is respected by players, coaches and his umpiring colleagues, and deserves this opportunity to umpire professional cricket on a regular basis.”

Since starting his umpiring journey in 2010, Howard has been in the middle for 210 matches in NSW Men’s Premier Cricket, including three white ball First Grade finals.

He has officiated at six Cricket Australia Underage National Championships, most recently during the 2022-23 season, where he was appointed to the Final at the U19 Male National Championships in Adelaide.

In addition to the elevation of Howard, Victorian umpire Daryl Brigham has also been included on the Contracted Umpire Panel (CUP) for the summer ahead.

The CUP is a product of a new three-year MoU between Cricket Australia and the Umpire Leadership Group, combining what was previously the National Umpire Panel and the Supplementary Umpire Panel.

Chair of the CA Umpire Selection Panel Damien Mealey said, “The quality of the panel is an endorsement of the outstanding umpiring talent within Australian cricket.

“I would especially like to congratulate Daryl Brigham and Roberto Howard on their elevation to the Umpire Panel, which has been well earned after strong performances over a number of seasons.”

Their elevations come after the retirement of both Bruce Oxenford and Paul Wilson, whilst Nathan Johnstone was not offered a contract for the 2024-25 season.

Except for Wilson, all NSW umpires previously contracted remain involved in the Contracted Umpire Panel Gerard Abood, Greg Davidson, Simon Lightbody, Sharad Patel, Troy Penman, Claire Polosak, and Ben Treloar.

2024-25 CA Contracted Umpires Panel

• Gerard Abood (NSW)

• Daryl Brigham (VIC)

• Shawn Craig (VIC)

• Drew Crozier (SA)

• Greg Davidson (NSW)

• Stephen Dionysius (QLD)

• Phil Gillespie (VIC)

• Mike Graham-Smith (TAS)

• Roberto Howard (NSW)

• Donovan Koch (QLD)

• Simon Lightbody (NSW)

• Sam Nogajski (TAS)

• Sharad Patel (NSW)

• Troy Penman (NSW)

• Claire Polosak (NSW)

• Eloise Sheridan (SA)

• David Taylor (QLD)

• Ben Treloar (NSW)