Question Number: 14887

Character, Attitude and Control 2/23/2007

RE: Select Under 12

A.C. Ramsey of Fort Worth, Texas USA asks...

I am not only a soccer parent but also a team manager for my daughter's select team. We have had three bad experiences with a referee, twice against the same team. Our girls play a very physical game. However, they do not push players down from behind or kick them in the back of the leg when the ball is nowhere in the vicinity. This particular opponent does this and more. The latest incident involved first a hand ball in the box by one of our players. The referee rightly called for a PK. Later in the game, a girl from the opposing team batted the ball down with her fist. The ball did not hit her first. She hit the ball. The referee will still at midfield. Our coach and parents were calling for a hand ball. The referee told the coach to control the sidelines that he "saw what happened." The coach was still trying to talk to the referee. He turned around, took two steps away, then turned back around and told all of the parents to go to the parking lot. He then stopped the game. This all happened in the span of about 30 seconds. Now we are facing a A&D hearing. From what I have read in various rules and bylaws, it does not appear that the referee followed proper protocol or fair play. Your thoughts?

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi AC,
we are reluctant to cast aspertions on incidents we did not see. As a referee I have had numerous coaches and parents upset with what were IN MY OPINION very straight forward decisions based on what I saw as a neutral individual with integrity. Perception real or imagined is no different to the mindset of the individual believing in his or her position.

You state opinions as facts, that is hard for me to view dispassionately EVEN if you are 100% correct or not.
Obviously the referee in that match viewed it different!
Is your word worth so much more?

I am not busting your chops here, only stating that being upset at a decision and wondering if it is ok to do so is not the issue. If you belive a referee has acted in an unprofessional manner or NEEDS help in foul recognition, fitness or mechanics. You should record and report even video the game to support an assessment for that particular referee. It is IMPORTANT to be accountable and we should be monitoring our referees when issues arise. No referee is perfect but many expect perfection reguardless of the ability or experience a referee may posess!

Now that said, you admit several actions that can only be framed as irresponsible behaviour. You can NOT make a decision on a foul nor yell at the referee to take your word for it! Coaches are there to COACH not referee and far too many FAIL in this regard miserably You can not debate a referee in the middle of a match or expect him to change his mind because you think he was wrong EVEN if he was or missed the call it is a FACT of play and cannot be undone as a referee's word is final. Yes it hurts, seems unfair but it is a NEUTRAL point of view right or wrong. You are not neutral and bias is a fact of life even when you are completely honest and full of righteous indignation. Remember your kids love you and if they see you dissent, get angry and yell abuse it bleeds into their hearts and into the match!

A referee can be approachable and not discount the emotional state a competitive match can bring forth. However the character of each individual is a reflection of the backbone, experience and compassion one develops over the LONG term, not a signal match or incident. Prolonged dissent, argumentative confrontational situations or outright abuse are not tolerated and a referee has the power to end such things by sending of the coaching staff or terminating a match .

I have no idea what bylaws are written as your league instructions but usually a referee terminates a match based on safety either the players or his own , by expulsion of the coaching staff some times no adult is there to attend to the youth.

A referee has no power to expel or order spectators around. He can declare the match will not proceed and tell the coaching staff the conditions he wants for it to resume which could be if those people stay this match will not continue. I urge referees to find less drastic ways to settle things down as in a warning to desist first BUT if the referee feels the conditions are too violent , unhealthy or place the kids or himself in harms way he is obligated to act accordingly.

This should not be an ego or power struggle but a decision made in the interest of the kids. A referee is a match condition just like the weather he can be fair and sunny with a light breeze or a horrid, cold, rainy, wind swept wasteland. You adapt and play.
Record and report, ensure ongoing monitoring and regularily assess , mentor, and train the referees in your leagues! Find reasons to praise as well as find fault as the finger of blame is a thin stick that easily breaks.

I wrote an article a long while back that asked are we on the same side if we agree to disagree? I pointed out the match is viewed differently as a spectator sees what they think, a player see what he feel, a coach sees what he wants and a referee sees what he sees.

I always try to find resolution rather than blame yet too often the, (I need to be right!) mentality overrides the ability to agree to disagree and move on. When I coach, my parents are ONLY allowed to praise and support. They are not permitted to engage the referee in ANY dialogue during a match and if the match went poorly I will ask them specifically to not hassle the referee. MY players respect the position of the referee even if the referee turns out be be less than stellar as all my players are trained as referees. I place them in matches friendlies if they do not wish to do actual matches (Now I wonder why that is??) but they at least have an understanding of the ALL alone pressure the position must deal with.. My captains are well versed in how to curry dialogue with a referee and while we will not suck up neither will we go out of our way to alienate. Thank you and please are tactically as important as is any skill we train for!

Remember do not argue a decision, if the law is misapplied and could create protestable situations record them and submit them to those that monitor and train. If you are unaware of who these people are find out as communication is essential to solve any problem.

Either as a league you WORK together to make the game good for ALL or you fall into them or us adversarial roles and in the end the only losers are the kids that play! I offer training programs for LEAGUES to interact with coaches, officials, referees, parents, players as codes of conduct contracts , training and information seminars monitoring programs how to get information to the right people quickly and effective bylaws that have workable deterrents and incentives for the GOOD of the GAME!

If it is true that a referee acts irresponsibly (this is always a possibility even at the elite level) all that I can say is the burden of shame rests on the soul of the provider.
Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

As my colleague says, there is no way for us to determine whether any call or lack of call is correct from a report given in a spectator's perspective. Nor can we say if this ref was too quick on the draw in his actions. I will make some general observations.

Some local leagues put the parents/spectators under the direct control of the referee. Others make them the responsibility of the coach. Whether the referee had the authority to send the parents to the parking lot is really immaterial, though. If he doesn't have the authority to do that, he does have the authority to suspend the game and tell the coach that it will not be restarted until (...fill in the condition...) happens.

I also note that this was a U12 game. You're not going to get the world's best referee there, it's a simple fact of life. The referees are learning their craft just as the girls on your team are learning their skills and tactics. Assignors work hard to get the best possible matchup between ref and game, but U12 is pretty low on the food chain. I also wonder just what kind of example all you adults are setting for your pre-teen daughters.

Your team will have its hearing. The coach will be able to present his side of things, and the referee will be heard from, either in person or by written report. Given what you've said, if I was a member of the disciplinary board your team wouldn't fare too well. Handling is an "in the opinion of the referee" call. The ref indicated he'd seen it, and wasn't calling it. The coach was attempting to argue. The parents were unruly. I'd vote to have the team forfeit that game, and would have to carefully consider whether the coach should be suspended or whether probation was sufficient. Now maybe that's my ref bias coming through, I don't know. Referees don't coach, coaches don't referee, and spectators don't do either. If everyone would abide by their proper roles, situations like this wouldn't happen.

However, in our area it wouldn't end there. Even before the hearing, our assignor and ref association president would be taking action. They would hear from this referee to see just what his thoughts on the game were. They would try to determine if he was lacking in any area of training or demeanor. They would look at his prior game assignments to see if there were problems in the past. He might get assessed, either formally or informally. The ref community takes complaints against officials very seriously, and works toward resolution. You may never hear the results of an inquiry, but rest assured, things do go on in the background.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

While I cannot comment as to the facts of play, I can comment as to behavior of the referee, coaches and parents. The referee unless specificaly designated by the State of Texas, has no power to tell the parents to leave. he is to approach your coach and refuse to restart the game until you all leave or he is allowed to terminate the match if he feels it cannot continue due to your behavior. Coaches have no right to discuss calls with the referee especially while the game is in play. This referee may be the worst referee is Texas but when he told your coach he saw what happened, that should have been it. Your coach and team officials have proper channels to go through when faced with a referee they feel has not done a proper job. That does NOT include screaming and yelling at him during a game. What did this gain you? Now you have to go before State officials and explain your behvior. Again, even if the referee has done a poor job, he is just a field condition and you need to learn to live with it. This is just a game for 11 year old kids. Sceaming at the referee teaches those kids it's ok to be disrespectful. If you go through proper channels, this referee will be properly evaluated. Also, keep in mind that no parent or coach is unbiased. I wasn't as a parent and coach and neither are you. What you see and the referee sees are almost ceratanly not the same thing. As an aside, since the word "handball" never appears in any official soccer publication, yelling this will alert the referee that you do not have an understanding of the Laws of the Game. It's a surefire way to put the referee in a bad mood and can do nothing beneficial to your team.