Refereeing – Page 2 – extricate.org

An evening with Kevin Friend

I attended an FA ‘Have Your Say’ event recently, courtesy of Surrey FA. The guest speaker was Kevin Friend who is refereeing at the highest level in England, being part of the PGMO Select Group.

What struck me about Kevin, and in the same way as when I saw Darren Cann and Mike Mallarkey speak, was just how open, honest and down to earth he was. In fact, the bulk of the presentation focused on mistakes he had made and how he had bounced back from them to get where he is now.

He, of course, learned from them and resolved to keep going, despite the disappointment at the time.

Some key points:

STAY TRUE TO YOURSELF: At level 4, Kevin finished his first season in band C. Acceptable, but he wanted to improve. The initial advice he got was that he needed to be issuing more cautions. He tried this. Next season: Band D! “You are giving out too many cards, keep them in your pocket!”. He tried this. Next season: Band E! What happened when he finally refereed to his own feelings and enjoyment? Promotion!
YOU ARE CAPTAIN OF THE SHIP: Kevin told the story of an FA Cup game earlier in his career when due to an error by his Assistant, a team played four substitutes. This led to action by the FA and of course a blot on his copy book! Since then, he has always kept a record of substitutes even when delegating the responsibility to an Assistant (or nowadays a 4th Official). Ultimately, as Referee, you are captain of the ship and responsible for your Assistants.
NOT GETTING PROMOTION: Kevin was all set for his initial interview and hopeful promotion to the Select Group. The season had gone well. However, in a crucial play-off semi final just the week before, he disallowed a goal which replays showed should have been allowed. Even worse, there was no trace of a foul. This very public critical error was mentioned as a factor for why he did not get the promotion. He resolved to back again next year in that office, except this time being promoted!
KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE PLAYER: In an infamous Portsmouth v Sunderland encounter, Kevin admits that he lost track of the player he wanted to dismiss for DOGSO. As a result, the wrong player was initially dismissed until the real culprit was identified and it was all sorted out. It looked really messy. However, lesson learned, to the extent of even bringing in a running commentary, e.g. “If number three brings him down now, that’s a red card….”.

The presentation concluded with a video highlighting a set of refereeing mistakes at European level, featuring a wide selection of officials. It just showed how important it is that we get everything right!

It was a great presentation and just goes to show: It is easy to keep positive when things are going well. However, the great referees are able to bounce back from major disappointments in their careers, and know it is down to them… and not blaming anyone else!

Mass Confrontation

I had an enjoyable game on Saturday at beautiful village green style pitch in the wilds of Surrey.

On paper, this game looked like there would be nothing in it: Bottom of the league v a team vying for a top three finish.

I had refereed the away side before but not made them particularly happy when I sent off one of their more vocal players for two cautions. By ‘vocal’ I do not mean the typical shouty/dissent sort of player which the word sometimes conjures up. He was clearly a strong leader within the side and would give out the good just as he was giving out the bad.

This set me the challenge of keeping a firm grip of the game to ensure that any ill-feelings from that game would not come back to haunt me.

The game itself was going pretty well all the way up to half time. However, there was then a horror tackle on a young home player. He reacted, albeit in a ‘handbags’ way, and the away player then put his hands round round his throat!

I was already well on top in terms of positioning and giving the whistle a good blow. However, I could then see everyone else piling in, including the benches, so it was time to just step back and let the situation play out.

Thankfully, the rest of the players and managers were being helpful, prising the away player away and protecting the home player. Pretty much all posturing. As a result, I dismissed the away player for Violent Conduct and cautioned the home player for his reaction to the challenge (Adopting an aggressive attitude).

I then made the effort to talk to the away side. They were upset that a home spectator had run onto the pitch, kicked the ball at them, and generally got involved in an aggressive way. I assured them that I had seen everything and that it would be reported. This was important, as you don’t want a team to go away from a mass confrontation feeling that the referee has not been fair to both sides. I also made sure to explain the difference being a ‘handbags’ style reaction to gripping someone round the neck in terms of the cards issued.

It was also important to thank the managers for getting involved in a positive way in calming their players down.

It was then half time! Certainly an interesting way to end the first half.

I was not sure what to expect in the second half. What amazed me was that both teams came out with a positive attitude and played a fantastic game of football. There was no trace of any aggression. If anything, it was good natured, with a home team player saying to me as he came out, “Shall we have another fight now then, ref?”. The game went right to the wire, with the away side getting the winning goal in the final play of the match.

Only one additional caution was needed, for a blatant block on a player making an attacking run up the wing.

This was one of those games where afterwards I felt I got everything spot on. A demonstration that the best way of easing any potential ill-feeling from a side is to just get out there and totally ‘nail it’ the next time you see them!

Here’s a bonus video of a fellow Surrey FA referee dealing with a mass confrontation which was a bit pressured! (Skip to 3m14)

Crossing the finishing line… and a county cup final!

Nearly there now! The referee promotion season finishes at the end of this month.

All my assessments are done, the marks look good, and I’ve submitted the required paperwork. There is the possibility that I will be assessed this weekend but it seems unlikely now. I’ve done everything I can so just need to sit back and wait for the results.

Will I have been successful in going from level 7 to level 5 in one season? (I obtained level 6 back in October).

It’s been a fun and eventful season. I hope all my fellow promotion candidates have enjoyed it and get what they are after when everything is announced.

I got some good news yesterday: I’ve been appointed as Reserve Referee to the Women’s County Cup Final in April. This will be great for experience, including playing with ‘the big flashing board’, and adds to the two county cup finals that I was privileged to be appointed to last season.

Will there be any other interesting appointments in the near future?

Ask The Ref: Mike Riley on BBC 5 live

Mike Riley is the manager of the Professional Game Match Officials (PGMO) board, which gives him the responsibility of looking after the referees at the professional level in England.

He recently took part in a BBC 5 live special, discussing, you guessed it, refereeing, with a particular emphasis on the Premier League.

Also featured is Kenny Hibbitt (Match Delegate) and Paul Rejer (Senior Coach of PGMO Assistant Referees).

Some topics:

Should Assistant Referees turn professional?
The assessing and match delegate system.
What is being done about the swarming of referees following contentious decisions?
Are referees letting personal / ‘big club’ relationships influence decisions?
Should assessor reports be made public?
Goal line technology and the Extra Assistants.
Should referees explain their decisions to the media after a game?

The Podcast can be found on the 5 live podcast page.

Welcome to Level 6

This post is a little bit belated. I was very pleased to have my refereeing promotion to level 6 confirmed by Surrey FA back in November.

There has been a lot of work involved in getting to this point, combined with a lot of support, although it is an ongoing process as I have level 5 in my sights come March 2012. This is all part of the Enhanced Promotion scheme.

Thankfully, that is going very well so far. Unlike the initial phase, I now get my marks for each of my assessed games, so it is easier to tell if I am on track. I have had two of my minimum of three assessments so far and am very happy with how they have gone. Hopefully, just one more strong one and that’s job done!

The Christmas and New Year break has come at a good time. I’ve been racking up the games and some relaxation time was definitely in order. A few niggly injuries were starting to hit me and I really want to make sure that I am sharp for the remainder of the season. In addition, I can go over the array of assessments to date and pick out the development points that I should be concentrating on.

Roll on January!

An evening with the World Cup Final Assistant Referees

I attended the Surrey FA RA-FA meeting last night, where Darren Cann and Mike Mullarkey gave their story of their involvement in the World Cup. They were the two Assistant Referees who accompanied Howard Webb and ended up officiating the Final! They certainly had a better campaign than the England national team.

I have met Darren and Mike before, when they were assisting Mike Jones in early 2010. I was impressed that they remembered me plus the game (Portsmouth v Birmingham).

What struck me about both Darren and Mike is just how down to earth they are. They have reached the utmost top of their profession yet there was not a single trace of any arrogance whatsoever. They have clearly worked extremely hard and made sacrifices to achieve their goals, yet remain very humble. They demonstrated great empathy with some of their colleagues who ended up being sent home after errors, for example.

world_cup_swag — Shiny things! Inflatable things!

Some general notes from the evening:

MARGIN FOR ERROR: Darren in particular had to make some very tight offside calls. After the event, the experts on hand were able to reproduce the situations and give the official verdict. On one occasion he had it correct… with the margin of error being 8 centimetres! That distance is NOTHING considered the pace of the game at the highest level. Very impressive.
HEADSET COMMUNICATIONS: They admit they are always refining these techniques. The key is “ABC” – Accurate, Brief, Concise. The example given was: “Free kick to attack, shirt pull, yellow card, number 8”. Same should apply at park level when the referee needs to consult in-person with an assistant.
ACTION AT THE OTHER END: Mike made a great comment regarding a game where Darren had all the action: “It was like being at a birth. All the action was happening at the other end, and I wanted to be involved, but it all seemed to be getting a bit messy so I thought best to stay where I was”. Brilliant.
DEBRIEFS: These did not happen in the changing rooms. Instead, they were done with all the teams of officials together over the following days, and backed up with video. In ‘situations of interest’, the officials involved had to stand up and explain why they took the action they did. Be that for a good or bad incident! That way, due to the supportive atmosphere, everyone learned.
COMING BACK FROM DESPAIR: I asked how Mike bounced back from Euro 2008, where it was his (lack of) an offside call that contributed to them being sent home. He was devastated but said the support he received was all-important. In particular, “It’s not making mistakes, it’s how you deal with them”. The strongest point he made here was that the one thing which helped boost him was when the FA nominated him for the next set of international fixtures. That vote of confidence was key. He urged any Appointments Secretaries present to consider the same approach if a referee has a bad game!
SHOWING THE CARD: They told how Howard received some advice from the previous Final referee: When showing the card, show it to the side. You are communicating the decision to the player with your eyes. The card is for everyone else! “Howard like it so much he showed it 14 times in the next game”.
GOAL LINE TECHNOLOGY: In favour, for absolute decisions only (“Has the ball crossed the line?”). Makes sense to trial it and see if it works. On that note, the extra assistants that stand on the goal-line: They make audio signals only regarding decisions. It might be better for them to make indications as otherwise it looks like they just aren’t involved.
LAWS OF THE GAME: Darren felt it would be interesting to bring back the ’10 yards for dissent’ experiment, although with a modification that it was optional for the attacking team (gaining 10 yards could be a disadvantage if going for a shot).
IGNORANCE: Occurs at the highest levels. A tale of a Premiership Manager not knowing that part of the foot is allowed on the pitch for a throw-in. A player thinking that a goal kick is not a goal kick if it isn’t taken on the corner of the goal area. Shocking!

It was a very insightful evening and my thanks go to everyone involved in making it happen.

Half-time in my Referee Promotion Year

It’s now coming up to half-time in my refereeing promotion season. The full year runs from March 2011 to the end of February 2012. However, as I am on the Enhanced Promotion scheme, I had until the end of September 2011 to achieve all the 7-6 objectives.

It’s a strange feeling knowing that I have now done all I can:

Refereed a minimum of 20 eligible games (I’ve managed about 27 according to my records).
Attended the ‘In Service Training’ course.
Passed an examination on the Laws of the Game (I scored 100% !).
Received a minimum of three Assessments.

There are a few other requirements, which I have also achieved, but these are more administrative (such as being CRB cleared!)

Now, I get copies of the assessments but I cannot know for sure whether they are ‘pass’ standard: The mark is not revealed to candidates! However, they are positive and give me a good feeling.

Ultimately, the decision now rests with the Refereeing Committee who will consider all of the above and decide what happens next. All I know at this point is that will happen sometime in October.

The waiting game begins…

Garmin Forerunner 410 – First impressions

I have had a few heart rate monitors over the years. I started out with a Polar RS200. This was a simple enough device which tracked HR and had good feedback for which training zone I was in. Sadly, it decided to die recently.

I also owned a Garmin Forerunner 305. This had the additional bonus of GPS tracking which allowed all sorts of geeky analysis. One downside was that it felt a bit like something out of Star Trek when worn due to its bulk. This one didn’t die. Instead, I lost it years ago. Oops.

It was time to get a new one and I elected for the Garmin Forerunner 410.

There have been a few different models since the 305 which have passed me by. In that time, the design has improved a lot and although the 410 is a little bit bigger than I would like, it will certainly do! I am a little bit disappointed by the strap as it is a bit clunky considering the price of the device.

The bezel on the watch is used to control the menu system. This works…okay… although is not really as responsive as I would like. I feel a typical watch interface would have been a bit smoother. That said, I really like how the core options can be accessed VERY quickly, and the backlight and locking options are very simple to access. Previous models had reports on rain and sweat triggering the menus and so far this has not happened to me.

The chest strap is very soft and comfortable although I’m not sure if I like how the transmitter unit needs to clip on. One more thing to lose! Plus if you forget to unclip the transmitter, the battery is going to run down overnight…

Used in anger when refereeing last night, everything worked great. I adjusted the display so I could see the items I cared about (loads of options here!) and just left it running. Annoyingly, ‘Auto Lap’ was on by default so I soon turned this off. Along with ‘key tones’ which have to be one of the most irritating default options on electronics around!

Data is easily transferred onto a laptop and into Garmin Connect via the provided ANT+ USB stick. This detects when a watch is in range and you pair it, much in the same way as with Bluetooth. It is all very seamless which is perfect. Once the data is on Garmin Connect, all the geeky data is there for review. Perfect!

One small note here: I exported the data from Garmin Connect to import into RunKeeper. At some end of that process it got truncated so ended up shorter in distance and time. Something to chase up.

So far, I am pretty happy with it. It works well and is providing a lot of interesting information!

Pre-season friendlies: A dangerous game?

Pre-season non-competitive games (think ‘friendlies’) are a bit of a challenge. In an ideal world, they would all end up like the pre-season game I did last weekend: Both teams knew each other, gave good banter, played with spirit and didn’t kick each other off the park. In fact, it was probably one of the most enjoyable games that I have refereed!

Ultimately, that is because both teams came along with the right attitude. Of course, I will naturally state at this point that I gave it the right ‘refereeing touch’ to allow them to just get on with it. Empathy is very important.

In the news, there has been another incident of a friendly becoming decidedly less so. Ilkeston v Mansfield Town was abandoned when the Mansfield manager instructed his players to leave the field of play. He was unhappy that three of his players had been injured, some to hospital treatment level, by the same opponent. After the game, Ilkeston suspended the offending player, subject to an internal investigation.

The player was also substituted following the third injury but clearly the damage had already been done, and the abandonment soon followed.

It is sometimes ‘customary’ for referees to be somewhat shy of using formal sanctions (cautions and dismissals) in pre-season games (“It’s only a friendly, ref!”). Hence a problem player is sometimes managed by way of him or her being substituted instead. This is a very dangerous game to play as if a game slips away from being ‘friendly’, choosing to not use any formal sanctions immediately removes key components of the referee’s toolbox.

The Laws Of The Game apply to pre-season games just like any other. I explain to the players before such games that just how friendly it is going to be is completely down to them and how they play the game. Cards will count! It would be great not to use them but I will use them if it comes to it. It’s a clear message.

Equally, ‘roll on, roll off’ substitutions are NOT permitted in pre-season friendlies (again, because the Laws Of The Game are the same!). There always seems to be the expectation that they should be allowed which is, sadly, down to some referees getting it wrong. Teams ARE allowed as many substitutes as they like, however, due to it not being a formal competition.

I’ve several more pre-season games coming up. It will be very interesting to see how they vary in tempo and temperature!

Do you have any pre-season game stories to share?

Setting goals for the season

I am really looking forward to the start of the football season. In terms of my own refereeing, this will be September. I have high hopes this time around, partly spurred on by the fact that I am on the Enhanced Promotion Scheme and there is a lot to get done!

When setting goals, it is really important to make sure that they are broken down into an achievable journey. After all, while ‘Get promoted’ is a goal there are steps that need to be taken as part of that! Success doesn’t happen by itself.

What are my goals?

PRE-SEASON (August)

MATCH FITNESS: Get safely back to full match fitness with a controlled approach. Target level by the end of pre-season is several games over a weekend without being a wreck afterwards. Avoid injury.
SUPPLEMENTARY FITNESS: Keep up the training as appropriate during the week. Be ready to comfortably pass the county fitness test in September.
DIET AND NUTRITION: Get fully back on the wagon. As a result of the healthy eating and exercise, drop around 10 kilograms (This will carry forward into the season). The fat has to go!
GET BACK INTO THE GROOVE: Referee a selection of games in the run-up to the season. Should be the same level as the games I will be assessed on. Some Assistant Referee work is allowed but I must ensure that my focus is being the Referee.

THE ACTUAL SEASON

FITNESS AND NUTRITION: Maintain the standards as set in pre-season. Mid-week games will make an appearance so the physical and mental demands will be increased. Lose the rest of the 10 kilograms, certainly!
BE STUNNING: I need to shine in the games. I will be assessed on some of them, after all, although I want the same standard throughout.
BE DISCIPLINED WITH REST: I must be at full capacity for assessed games so need to ensure I am not overdoing things. Also, the schedule is tight for the enhanced promotion process and being out injured is not going to help at all!
INCREASE KNOWLEDGE & NETWORKING: Attend seminars, local referee societies and watch other referees in action when I get the opportunity. There are so many sources to learn from!
GET PROMOTED: Level 6 in October, Level 5 in March. I’m not doing this to fail!
GET SOME GREAT APPOINTMENTS: As a result of all the above, I want to be getting some great appointments. County Cup Final? Who knows? I’m already on the FA competition nominated list which is exciting. I need to give a performance during the season which makes me worthy of getting these matches!
BE A ROLE MODEL: I want to be setting a high standard for myself and others. I’m undergoing Mentor Training in September as part of this.

I’m already making great progress with the pre-season elements. I’m eating and exercising well. The games I have had so far have been very positive. There is a long journey ahead and I know I am going to enjoy it!

How are you getting on with your own goal planning?