RIP Uriah Rennie

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We got to the school final in Y11 and he reffed us, he felt like Collina to us and we were starstruck that the guy who booked Rooney the week before was in charge of ours. One of our players gave him some back chat and Rennie pulled him over for a chat and knocked him down a peg or two, and no one gave him any lip then.

I used to work at SIV about a decade ago, and he was a big presence there and a very nice approachable man. RIP, very sad news
 
Shook his hand once at an awards ceremony when in the school cricket team. Was a very firm handshake too! Legend of a man RIP Uriah ❤️
 
I was reffing in Concord park one Sunday morning and before my game i was getting changed and in walked Uriah. The day before he had done a Prem game at West Ham. I asked him if he had enjoyed it and he said it was ok but he enjoyed his Sunday morning games more.
Top guy who never left his roots behind. R.I.P.
 
So sad. I first knew Uriah just before he embarked upon his refereeing career. He played a season for us (Windsor FC, based from the Wybourn pub), we had progressed into the Hatchard league, good local standard, and Uri as Very young black guy, took some very unpleasant stick from the many dickheads in those days (both on and off the field).
We as a team were very protective of him but he had this steely determination about him and was very capable of looking after himself.

We had a very successful season and gained promotion to the County Senior league, Uriah showing great promise as a young guy in an aging team. He was a no nonsense, strong athletic defender, very physical, quick, not a great first touch but mighty effective at that level.
So, when he announced at the end of season celebration that he was 'retiring' to take up refereeing (he was 18 or 19 at the time), we were gobsmacked. Obviously we tried to persuade him it was a bad move and he had plenty of time to ref when his career was over.
His common reply was - I want to make it to the top in refereeing so I'm starting now.
We all thought he was mad, two reasons, one, he was a young kid with a decent playing career ahead of him. Two, how many made it to the top in refereeing and he had the added disadvantage of being a black guy. Nobody liked refs anyway, so a black ref would attract all the wrong attention!
The rest is history as the say....

I had nothing but admiration for his tenacity and determination to achieve what he set out to attain in his life. He was fantastic role model, not only for young black people but to any skin colour, as someone from a somewhat deprived background who saw a goal, and achieved it by ability, fortitude and character.
On the rare occasions our paths crossed, he always had time for a chat and laugh at the old days before his game, a genuine gentleman and real nice guy!
One anecdote that symbolises his attitude to refereeing and why he succeeded -
A few years after his season with us, I was now playing at Frecheville in the County Senior league, and Uriah (typically) had progressed rapidly through class 1&2 reffing standards and was a class1, hence now reffing at top standard locally. He had one of our matches up at Frecheville's Silkstone Rd ground, I saw him pre match and had a chat and laugh with him...
During the game he gave decision I didn't like (not unusual!) and I gave it him both barrels, he stopped the game, called me over, bollocked me and in the days before yellow cards asked me my name. I looked at him and laughed, you know my fuckin name Uri !
Name! And I'm Ref to you!
I meekly gave him my name,
took the booking and ensuing fine and realised that yes, Uriah Rennie was definitely going to the top!
RIP Uri! A life cut sadly short, but well lived.
 

RIP Uriah. Top ref and paved the way for many other black refs and officials.
 
He had only just been made Chancellor at Hallam Uni. RIP to a great man.
 
Really sad to hear this news. Only 63 which might sound old to some but it’s not. RIP Uriah.
 
Very sad news. A top quality ref who, as eluded to above, dealt with backchat and similar situations with 'old school' common sense. A true gent.
I was listening to Radio sheffield this morning and they played part of an interview he'd done recently with Paulette. It nearly left me in tears. You could tell what a gentle force of nature he was. RIP Uriah.
 
LSF said:
So sad. I first knew Uriah just before he embarked upon his refereeing career. He played a season for us (Windsor FC, based from the Wybourn pub), we had progressed into the Hatchard league, good local standard, and Uri as Very young black guy, took some very unpleasant stick from the many dickheads in those days (both on and off the field).
We as a team were very protective of him but he had this steely determination about him and was very capable of looking after himself.

We had a very successful season and gained promotion to the County Senior league, Uriah showing great promise as a young guy in an aging team. He was a no nonsense, strong athletic defender, very physical, quick, not a great first touch but mighty effective at that level.
So, when he announced at the end of season celebration that he was 'retiring' to take up refereeing (he was 18 or 19 at the time), we were gobsmacked. Obviously we tried to persuade him it was a bad move and he had plenty of time to ref when his career was over.
His common reply was - I want to make it to the top in refereeing so I'm starting now.
We all thought he was mad, two reasons, one, he was a young kid with a decent playing career ahead of him. Two, how many made it to the top in refereeing and he had the added disadvantage of being a black guy. Nobody liked refs anyway, so a black ref would attract all the wrong attention!
The rest is history as the say....

I had nothing but admiration for his tenacity and determination to achieve what he set out to attain in his life. He was fantastic role model, not only for young black people but to any skin colour, as someone from a somewhat deprived background who saw a goal, and achieved it by ability, fortitude and character.
On the rare occasions our paths crossed, he always had time for a chat and laugh at the old days before his game, a genuine gentleman and real nice guy!
One anecdote that symbolises his attitude to refereeing and why he succeeded -
A few years after his season with us, I was now playing at Frecheville in the County Senior league, and Uriah (typically) had progressed rapidly through class 1&2 reffing standards and was a class1, hence now reffing at top standard locally. He had one of our matches up at Frecheville's Silkstone Rd ground, I saw him pre match and had a chat and laugh with him...
During the game he gave decision I didn't like (not unusual!) and I gave it him both barrels, he stopped the game, called me over, bollocked me and in the days before yellow cards asked me my name. I looked at him and laughed, you know my fuckin name Uri !
Name! And I'm Ref to you!
I meekly gave him my name,
took the booking and ensuing fine and realised that yes, Uriah Rennie was definitely going to the top!
RIP Uri! A life cut sadly short, but well lived.
Click to expand...
Yellow cards were introduced into English football in 1976 when Uriah Rennie would have been 15 years old??
 
Was reffed by Uriah a few times in my playing days.
Sad to hear he has passed on.
R.I.P.
 
Just want to echo a lot of the sentiments on here and the loss of Uriah Rennie is a sad loss for the game of football and the city of Sheffield.

I got to know him from training at the same gym. Hillsborough Leisure Centre and he always had time for a chat, usually about United but a couple of years I did the Leeds Marathon and raised money for MNDA after being inspired by Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield and whenever our paths crossed he’d ask me how the training was going and give a few words of encouragement. A couple of weeks after I’d done it I was in there doing a bike session and he came and asked me how I’d got on with the marathon and it was my pleasure to tell him that it had been a successful endeavour.

The one thing that always struck me was that he had a bit of a natural aura about him, and he commanded respect, but he always gave people the time of day, was softly spoken and a very intelligent guy too. It’s a sad day for football but an even sadder day for Sheffield as he was one of us. Most of all he was a very, very decent human being
 

Used to see him also in the gym at Hillsborough, I never talked to him but you could tell he was a genuine nice fella. A smile on his face, talking to people in the gym and changing room, some of them I’m sure he didn’t know but talked to them about local football. A very fit man as well living life the right way, life is so cruel at times.
 
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