Tag: violent conduct

Reading the riot act

Asserting control...

I am a big believer in that the referee should be pretty much invisible. The game should flow and be about the players. However, there are times when the referee must deliberately raise his profile.

One of the leagues that I referee on is a youth league. Following some positive feedback on how I dealt with a severe Violent Conduct recently, I have been put on the ‘games of note’ list for the league. This means that I get given games where one or both of the teams have become ‘known’…

Youth games can be refereed by other youths. They may naturally be fantastic referees but due to their age can start with a disadvantage with regard to winning respect from some players, managers and spectators. Note: some. I regularly smile at some of the great sportsmanship that is shown within the game! Anyway, as (allegedly) a fully grown man I can be sent in as a ‘stunt referee’ as required.

I had one of these games at the weekend.

No problems to begin with. It was a tight game and I remember thinking that I had not had to give any fouls for at least the first ten minutes. Could it last…?

The problem was that the goals started to come. In a very one-sided fashion. The losing team responded by becoming a lot more physical and frustrated in the second half (They ended up losing 10-0).

... before it is too late!

I dismissed one of their players for Violent Conduct (an open handed chest strike). This was claimed to be a retaliation but I did not see the alleged first incident and can only give what I see!

Shortly after this, there was a late challenge for the ball from the same team which shoulder-charged the opponent to the ground. It wasn’t just late but tinged with maliciousness.

This was when I had to raise my profile and essentially ‘read the riot act’. I raised my voice so that pretty much anyone around was going to hear me and pulled the offender and the captain over. I made it very clear that they had stepped over the line and that the captain now had to get control of his team. This was finalised with a caution for the dodgy challenge.

This had the desired effect. Those challenges stopped although the losing team also pretty much gave up.

The referee’s presence over the game must match the spirit in which it is played. Just as this means being invisible during a good, friendly game, it means rising to the challenge of maintaining control when a flashpoint occurs.

It has not escaped my attention that I have now dismissed someone for Violent Conduct in my last three youth games. One of those players is now on a ‘sine die’ suspension.

SEE ALSO: Fine for 43minutes! which talks of ‘bossing it’ when games get more heated.

Violent Conduct: Drawing the line

Red card coming!

Violent Conduct results in a clear dismissal when it happens. The relevant part of the Laws Of The Game are as follows:

  • A player is guilty of violent conduct if he uses excessive force or brutality against an opponent when not challenging for the ball.
  • He is also guilty of violent conduct if he uses excessive force or brutality against a team-mate, spectator, match official or any other person.
  • Violent conduct may occur either on the field of play or outside its boundaries, whether the ball is in play or not.

A clear line has to be drawn that this is totally unacceptable in the game. This is a more obvious line in some cases: My first dismissal for Violent Conduct was following a player deliberately stamping on the head of their opponent.

In my most recent game as Assistant Referee, two players were dismissed for Violent Conduct after getting into a fight. It started as ‘handbags’ but a few punches were thrown. No question: Dismissal. The furore afterwards also resulted in a team manager being ordered away from the touchline by the referee.

That was bad enough but the irksome bit was the comment “It shouldn’t have been a red card; it wasn’t a proper fight”. Not a proper fight?! In my eyes, even an attempt to strike or preparing to throw a punch is going to result in a dismissal. Remember that we dismiss for ‘touching heads’ even though it is not what would traditionally be called a head butt.

I’d be very concerned if some referees were being soft on this one as it has to be a zero-tolerance line. Equally, the players and team officials need to treat it as such as well. Certainly never players ‘blowing off steam’ …

Have you encountered any ‘borderline’ Violent Conduct? Where do you feel that ‘adopting an aggressive attitude’ (Unsporting Behaviour) comes in instead?

Some non-borderline cases: