Cricket Australia (CA) Contracted Umpire Panel member Roberto Howard has made his KFC BBL umpiring debut in the match between the Melbourne Stars and the Sydney Thunder at Manuka Oval in Canberra.
Howard’s umpiring career began over a decade ago in Sydney when he first stood in the New South Wales Premier Cricket Competition. Howard was appointed to all major Cricket Australia underage National Championships throughout his high-performance pathway career. Howard was elevated to the New South Wales State Umpire Panel prior to the 2018-19 season. That season, Howard made respective debuts in the WBBL and Toyota Second XI competitions. Howard has gone on to stand in a total of 39 WBBL matches to date with a further two appointments in the TV Umpire’s chair.
In 2019-20, Howard was appointed to the first of his 11 KFC BBL matches as Fourth Umpire. That same season, Howard was appointed to the first of his three Under 19 Male National Championships held in Perth. The most recent of Roberto’s Under 19 tournaments in 2022-23, Howard was appointed to the Final at Karen Rolton Oval in Adelaide.
Prior to the 2022-23 season, Howard completed his Cricket Australia Level 3 – High Performance Officiating Accreditation at the invitation-only program held in Brisbane. Leading into this season, Howard was elevated to Cricket Australia’s Contracted Umpire Panel for the first time. Howard became the 35th Australian Umpire to stand on-field in the KFC Big Bash League, and just the 10th umpire from New South Wales.