Question Number: 22270

League Specific 10/18/2009

RE: school High School

donna of syosset, ny usa asks...

What can be done about the High School Socceer teams with dirty players. One of the teams in our league has sent two girls from other teams to the hospital. And thats all I have heard of. They curse and taunt the players. We play them tomorrow and Im worried.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Physical play in the contact sport of soccer is a risk that as a player/keeper you must deal with.
For a parent we always love worry over our kids.
That is simply a parent's job! ;o)

On the pitch one can hope the referee is neutral, fit, well trained, knows the laws of the game backwards and forwards, has good foul recognition, the accumulated Wisdom of Solomon, Saladin, Ghandi and the Dahlia Lama with two great ARS in support.

Perception and truth are often blurry visions of opinions formed not only by what we see and hear but what we think we know and what we want and how we feel! I often comment that a match is viewed by the needs of the participants
1 player sees what he feels
2 coach sees what he wants to see
3 spectator sees what they think they see
4 Referee sees what he sees

While it is possible the ideals of fair play and sportsmanship can be tarnished by the uncouth actions of a few. Be it the players themselves or a poor excuse of a coach. There are very strict guidelines when it comes to behaviour in high school soccer as the pitch is considered an extension of the classroom. A code of conduct is in place to oversee culpable actions!
Ethically one must combine the competitive drive to excel with the compassion of integrity and honour. Look around, on the soccer pitch is not the only place where such character is lacking.

If you want accountability then step up and take some actions to monitor and record the matches in the league. Video with sound, written reports by neutral observers and as unbiased a report as you and other self interest observers can try to put together. Who is responsible? Find out and get their attention. Ensure the league is monitoring and evaluating and training the officials! Are there by-laws, policy and procedures in place to deal with confrontational issues?

As in any politics you need to become part of the solution so get involved, become a director or committee member or coach or sign up for a course in refereeing? Learn first aid to become a trainer and work on the fitness and heath to prevent injuries!
Other than that try to relax and enjoy the game! Your anxiousness can be transmitted to your daughter. We do not want to go looking for trouble either! I will pray no one is needlessly hurt! Cheers

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

High school soccer is considered part of the school's educational system, and often the school's athletic director and principal will become involved. In my area, we had one school last year that had significant behavior issues. The athletic director and principal heard about the issue from the principal from another school, and the athletic director became concerned when reading the red card reports sent in by the referees. They attended their team's next match, and spoke with their players and their new, young coach. Ultimately, they decided that their own team would withdraw from the league and forfeit the rest of the matches. The problem with most schools, however, is that the principal and athletic director do not attend the matches, and don't see what is happening on the field.

But, complaints from parents (about some other school) usually are not treated in the same way as requests from the principal/athletic director from the opposing school or the referee's match reports. If there is trouble at your match, I suggest you speak with your team's coach or athletic director.

The referee association's assignors often are the first to notice/hear about schools with field discipline issues. They usually try to assign more experienced referees to control the situation. Sometimes, however, there are more challenging matches than experienced referees.

Answer provided by Referee Michelle Maloney

Ref Wickham and Ref Dawson are absolutely correct. Your high school's principal and athletic director MUST become involved. If the allegations are found to be correct, and you and other parents/coaches/players can provide factual evidence as noted, the school officials have the pull and the responsibility to have changes made. Do not delay in getting them involved.