Henry hand ball referee Hansson considered career change

Stockholm: Swedish referee Martin Hansson, whose failure to spot Thierry Henry's hand ball in the World Cup playoff between France and Ireland, says he considered a career change after facing a storm of criticism.

He was quoted as telling a regional Swedish newspaper that he had had serious doubts about continuing his 8-year international career, but said he would referee a Champion League game next month as planned.

"I thought: Is the job really worth all this degradation that I have to hear," Hansson told the Sydostran paper, adding he also thought that "maybe this is not my thing."

Last week, Henry's deliberate hand ball set up an equalizer for teammate William Gallas in the playoff that helped give France a 1-1 draw with Ireland and a 2-1 win on aggregate, advancing the team to next year's tournament in South Africa.