Question Number: 26191

League Specific 4/16/2012

RE: Rec Under 14

Kaitlyn Rasmussen of Glastonbury, Connecticut United States asks...

I am a new referee and am going to sign up for my first game soon. I am unclear on the timing of the games though. When you set your watch, how long should you do it for? How long should yhe halves be? And when it is time to call half time, do you let the players finish their play or just call it? Any answers would be great please!

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Katilyn
You should get a copy of the competition rules which sets out the length of games and any special rules such as the number of substitutions etc
Under 14 games usually have 35 minute halves with a short break at half time. When the time is expired the referee blows her whistle to end the half
The break is also usually defined but cannot be longer than 15 minutes. Most though run to about 8 / 10 minutes.
I would advise you to perhaps seek out a mentor to help you with refereeing. The person will be perhaps a retired referee who will come along to games to answer question, give advice and point you in the right direction. I would also ask you to go to a number of games where you know there is an experienced referee officiating. Watch everything that official does including the signals, whistles etc. That will be invaluable help as you develop your skills.

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

Your league should have a list of times. Usually, each half gets longer for U10, U12, U14, and U16. U19's usually are the full 45 minutes.

I wear two watches (my watch broke in my second experience as a referee): one counting up, and one counting down. (I don't have to do math when someone asks how much time is left.)

The laws give the referee discretion to add time for unusual events (injuries, excessive celebration, undue delays (including constant substitutions by the team in the lead). As the match progesses, I consider whether to add at least X minutes.

You do not need to blow the whistle as your watch reaches zero or as added time reaches the precise minute. Instead, try to wait until the ball or play is headed away from one of the goals. That minimizes the chance that the ball will end up in the back of the goal just after you blew the final whistle.

Have fun and enjoy your game.