A FORMER Premiership referee was on hand to sign copies of his candid account of life as "the man in black" at the weekend.

Middlesbrough-born Jeff Winter visited the town's Waterstones book store to sign copies of his book, Who's The B*****d In The Black?: Confessions Of A Premiership Referee, on Saturday.

The book takes the reader through the career of the top referee - describing what it is like to step out on to a pitch with 50,000 fans and what really gets said between players or managers in the tunnel or the white heat of the game.

Since breaking all ties with the Football Association, Mr Winter is free to speak about his experiences. He was a regular Premiership referee for seven seasons, before reaching the standard FA retirement age of 48. He bowed out in style in 2004, taking charge of the FA Cup final between Manchester United and Milwall.

Waterstones' duty manager Mark Cruden said: "It went really well, we had a good response."