 Posted 31/07/2007 10:06:09
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| Talking to another coach in our league this morning about one particular team in our league (under 8's from September). His team had played them in friendly and he was telling me that once his team was 2 0 up, the tackles suddenly started to fly in. There was pushing and shoving going on and the kids were beginning to not get rattled but very scared and timid. It was their ref who was the opposition coaches son and he did nothing to stop it and niether did the other coach or parents. The match was played out and the parents were fuming and a big argument ensued after the match. I said I would have just taken my players off and gone home. Easier said then done and had it been a league match we probably would have been fined had we done that but I dont really know what the answer is. What would you do?
Woolston Rovers Warrington
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Posted 31/07/2007 11:19:19
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| I would have taken my team off.....i know in certain circumstances that is easier said than done but after the event once the situation was explained to the league then the team that got feisty should be punished,although i know that isnt a guarantee. My biggest issue with junior football is the involvement of parents as managers, referees and certain times as spectators. I was always told that parents can be your biggest problem as a junior coach but to be fair my group have on the whole been excellent for the six years i have had the team.......other teams we have faced havent been so good though. The worst is referees, we have had some shocking matches, one game finished ten minutes early luckily we equalised just before the end. Every desicion went against us and we had 2 goals dissallowed for nothing!! Another match the ref was the managers son and it was a joke, the only thing that went our way was goal kicks and even some of them were given as corners against us, looking back it is quite funny as it was so bad but at the time it was appaling and that result (2-5) although a couple of weeks from the end of the season ultimatley lost us the league title to that team we were playing. The biggest problem is the shortage of referees so dont get me wrong i have every respect for any parent/manager willing to ref a game to make sure the game goes ahead but if you cant do it without biased dont bother.....to be honest i havent and hopefully never will have to ref one of my teams matches as i am quite happy to admit i would be biased but someone turning up in a proper refs kit claiming to be qualified then being blatantly biased for "their" team causes more problems than its worth!! Rant over...lol
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Posted 13/08/2007 09:28:54
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| i think what you thought you would do was the right thing to do. take them home. However you would also raise up a comlpaint toward the parties with organising the league. otherwise a protest should only be used as a last resort when the issue seems to be persistent. I also seem to have my own queries
keep it real
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Posted 26/08/2007 21:29:44
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| I'll come back to what I have suggested before. All players must, by the time they reach 16, have completed a rudimentary Referee's course before they are allowed to play on after 16. Now before anyone begins to say "It cant work", it CAN, given the cooperation of the FA and Referee's Organisations. Players will learn about the role of referees and how hard its is to do. But also you will get a lot of young, new referees as they will want to play and referee. This would go some way to bridging the gap between matches and the availability of qualified referees. The stigma attached to referees is that of abuse from parents AND players, but there again, if ANY parent is found guilty of abusing a referee at a match, then, instead of just fining that person or banning, award the penalty that UNTIL the person has completed a referees course successfully then they will be banned from attending ANY matches regardless.
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Posted 28/08/2007 14:02:39
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| I think making players take mandatory referee courses is a great idea. I think it would also make them better players and more attractive to professional clubs. Have you thought about putting your idea to the Don't Cross The Line campaign? I'm sure they will support it on their website: http://www.dontxthelinecampaign.com/ Cheers
Dwyer
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Posted 28/08/2007 14:38:32
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| I think in theory making players do a referees course is a very good idea..but, i found once my lads left the under 16 age group then there were very few leagues available at under 17, i also found that at this age group that players were now working and driving and socialising in a different way so keeping them commited to the cause so to speak wasnt easy, making people do this could throw up even more obstructions and could possibly decrease the amount of interest from players once they reach this age. If there was any way qualified referees could maybe be booked for teams training sessions and they could spend an hour or more going through the basics in the laws of the games and problems experienced by refs from players, coaches, supporters etc also how the players can get into refereeing and the good and enjoyable sides to the job. - how this could be funded is debatable - either the team/club pay for this or even an FA initiative could be started??? Alternatively each county FA could allocate one or two refs to each age group and they could go to one individual teams training session each week until every team had been visited. If they went through the above points and gave the players more of an insight, then more interest in refeering could arise. With most leagues having no more than two divisions in each age group i think this could be a practical idea. Also if a team needs a "top up" course during the season then they can book one if needed. Of course it would mean refs who give up their Sunday mornings/afternoons giving up a Saturday morning or week night but surely the potential benefits would be worth it???
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Posted 23/11/2007 21:37:42
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| I had this happen last year when we came up against opponents who were up for the league title with us. We played them at home and won 1-0. The manager and parents at the end of the game were chanting cheats because at the end of the game the ref supposedly did'nt play enough time added on ( i'm not gonna argue the case either because i was'nt taking any notice of the time) it was a game early in the season and nothing really relied on who won etc. Anyway they were aggrieved, so when we went to their place the league title was up for grabs (within a couple of games) and a family member of the other side reffed the game. As most i would'nt like to ref a game, its probably one of the most hated jobs in the world ( behind a traffic warden!) but if i did i would be fair, if not for all involved, mostly for me. This person could not of been more biased if he tried. Needless to say that we lost the game but the ref was so bad even the kids on the pitch were commenting on how bad the ref was! These kids were only 9yrs old, what was it telling them! Myself personally i was disgusted and after the match went over to the ref and told him i would report him to the league for improper conduct (which i did). At such an early age should children be shown such bad sportsmanship! Unfortunately i have seen this far to often at junior level and it is a nasty blot on the page. Yes its a good idea to get the kids to take ref lessons, its the ADULTS involved and on the side lines who need the education as well! So they can pass on the knowledge better than any classroom could. Most of the time it is they whom corrupt the beautiful game!
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Posted 28/11/2007 18:54:24
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| Always have a parent with a video camera. If your league has an officer of the day or a senior officiating member then have somebody contact them so that they can see what is happening. The safety of the kids is the most important aspect though, winning or losing a game is not worth a serious injury to a child.
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Posted 05/12/2007 17:07:38
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The video camera is a good idea, any kind of camera, phone camera etc if things get out of hand just capture it so you have some proof.
I took my players off during a league match at under 15 when we were playing an away game because the referee had lost the game and every time we got the ball a two footed challenge came in. One of my players walked off because he felt the atmosphere was too aggressive. A couple of parents asked me to take the team off which I did. I sent my players straight home because of the aggressive attitude of the team once i done that. We had very young children with us and I feared for their safety.
I got fined by county FA for a pitch invasion! The referee was qualified so when his report said he was in total control of the game when I took my players off it was taken as gospel. The referee's brother played for the team! I had 5 parents write in my defence but that was completely ignored. When I asked what to do if the situation occurred again I was told I was not allowed to go on the pitch and take my players off without the referee's permission - which of course I was not going to get.
I was also told that if I do have this problem to get a passerby to back me up, someone who is independent of both teams (not particularly easy in the heat of the moment) or a policeman passing by (yeah right).
It is a very difficult problem and one you as coaches should be aware of. The referee's word will always be taken as the truth if he is qualified so I would advise not to take your players off unless it is a friendly.
Dave Clarke Soccer Coach Weekly Editor
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Posted 07/12/2007 13:41:47
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Firstly for the camera issue, you may need permission of the club and parents to film. As for the game, if the referree cannot control the players then bringing them off immediately and reporting the ref to the County you are playing in is sufficient. It should also be highlighted at the club you playrd against. ALL children should be protected and that includes the ones commiting the terrible foul, they will never get anywhere or even enjoy the game if they are taught the incorrect way to play football.
Cheers
Coach Sandy
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