Question Number: 25966

Law 5 - The Referee 2/12/2012

RE: Select High School

Gary Blanton of Lebanon, Ohio USA asks...

This question is a follow up to question 7019

I know this.. Prior to the AR cursing saying 'You all have an F'ing' attitude an ASST coach was ejected for what the center called dissent. What happened was a hard tackle about 60 yards from the center in front of the Asst. coach and AR, the AR didnt signal a foul. The ASST. coach asked what the call was and the referee said trip. The Asst coach said that our player hit the ball and that the other player fell over it. The referee then said 'You should not be a coach!'. The Asst. Coach said 'You shouldnt be a referee!' while I know the ASST coach was wrong I feel as if the referee baited him. When the ASST. Coach left and play resumed the AR went past the bench and the other ASST. coach and dropped the F bomb. The coach and the referee for the next match were near the center line and both admitted they didnt hear her say it. The head coach told the ASST that heard to tell the referee. Our team was on the attack to score our 7th goal of a 6-0 relegation match. The referee blew the whistle and stopped play and ask what the issue was. The ASST coach told him the AR cursed at us. He then said 'His daughter would not do that.' and sent off that ASST coach. The referee then approached the head coach and began yelling at him. The head coach being ex-military locked up at parade rest and made no motion nor said anything. This referee then told our coach that this match is suspended and would be decided by the league. After the match the head coach noted that his card was also taken along with both ASST coaches. The head coach was also informed while addressing the team that we should get out of there because the referee was restrained twice by the other referee's from attacking the head coach. The head coach asked the other AR about his coaching card and was informed that the referee kept them. The head coach on the way home called his assignor and wrote an email explaining the events. Many parents also wrote letter explaining the events and supporting the head coach. It was later learned that this referee was a board member of the losing club which means that this team would have fallen out of the top level of this league. After the leaugue investigated this the statement from them was that the officials report is the only report that is official and that it is taken as 100% truth. The head coach was removed from the club and also removed from his board position. The clubs board informed the team that they would get them a new coach. The parents asked for a meeting with the clubs board but only the President and VP showed up. The parents told them that they were leaving the club and following the head coach. That next season 100% of the players went with the coach to a new club. Its a shame that no matter how bad a referee is or how wrong they are and no matter how many eye witness write separate letters to the club and league with their details matching that a referee's report is taken as 100% truth. This referee was not impartial nor fair in his duties and its a shame a coach had to take the fall. After the incident it learned that the league put pressure on the club under threat of kicking them out of the league. To be clear I was that head coach. I have gone on to be a JV coach, a Varsity Coach, a grade 8 referee, and club trainer. I love this game to much to be driven from it. Since then I have made every attempt to make things better but I am amazed at how many good ole boys there are that love the power they are given. Like 'senior' referee instructor said in my initial referee class holding up a badge and whistle 'What do these things mean?' he asks the class. We answer safety, fairness and many other things he then says 'Youre in charge!' I just sat there and shook my head which I found myself doing several times in the class as he continued to talk and throw in curse words in front of young wanna be referees. Again shaking my head and laughing thinking if I said those things as a coach I would be thrown out of a game. Sorry this was so long but 'Now you know the rest of the story..' or at least from my point.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Gary
The annals of soccer worldwide are littered with unpleasant and displeasing situations. The common theme that links them all is that Codes of Conduct were not followed by everyone. Had the relevant codes been followed the situations would not have arisen.
Now we all know not to expect the perfect world so situations are always going to arise. Everyone sits on their hilltop viewing from a unique perspective. One person's genius is another person's idiot. Self confidence can be seen as gutsy while another will view it as arrogant. Gentle nature can be viewed as considerate while another will see it as weakness. Sometimes perspective can be defined by how close one is to the situation. Speak to any Liverpool or Man United supporter about the Evra / Suarez debacle and you will find two diametrically opposed views. The FA made a decision based on the various reports.
Looking at this sitaution from a distance I have a different perspective and what I can say about your lengthy post is that there are a number of key points that can be made.
1. The Laws & Rules do not allow for dissent by anyone. I have yet to see a coach ejected for coaching his team.
2. Match official must act in a professional manner at all times. As USSF's Referee code states ' I will conduct myself honorably at all times and maintain the dignity of my position'. The position does not allow referees to act in an unethical and unprofessional manner.
3. The Laws of the Game state that ' each match is controlled by a referee who has full authority to enforce the Laws of the Game in connection with the match to which he has been appointed.''. How that advice is conveyed by instructors is a matter of personal preference which goes back to my earlier point is that the comment 'Your in charge' can be viewed as short for the sentence in the Laws or if viewed negatively as an instruction which suggests referees do what ever they want. You can take it that it is the former. However it should not be conveyed with profanities and that should be reported
4. As regards match reports again the Laws state that ''the referee provides the appropriate authorities with a match report, which includes information on any disciplinary action taken against players and/or team officials and any other incidents that occurred before, during or after the match''. The referee is the agent of the competition organisers at that game. In the absence of any other official report such as that of an observer the authorities have to adjudicate on what is presented and arrive at a conclusion.

Answer provided by Referee Gary Voshol

Wow, that's a lot of detail for an incident that was reported here more than 8 years ago.

I wasn't on the panel at the time, but I would have responded similarly to the original responses. We can't judge a 'he said / she said' scenario. We can only note that it would be inappropriate for a referee to swear at anyone, but that if the reported exchange wasn't heard by anyone in authority, there is no way for anyone to take any action. It's like a player who reports to the ref that an opponent said something. If the ref didn't hear it, the ref can't act.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

Hi Gary. I answered the original question 8 years ago and will again now.

It is totally inappropriate for an AR to curse at any coach.
It is totally inappropriate for a referee to dismiss a coach based on what ANY spectator says, including referees not working that game.

We still have only your version of events. If true, and no reason to believe otherwise, the League you were involved with was run by incompetents. I can assure you that the referee report is not always the only item taken as 100% truth. Assignors and disciplinary boards do not automatically dismiss reports of bad referee behavior.

But (there's always a but isn't there?) the referee report IS the official report. Complaining parents and coaches often will be dismissed because it becomes a he said/she said confrontation and the referee is almost always given the benefit of the doubt. That said, why would you be removed of your duties as a coach and be forced to leave your League based on a single referee report? That makes no sense.

Congratulations on getting your badge. When on the field you ARE in charge but as Spider-man painfully found out: with great power comes great responsibility.