Question Number: 34170

Other 3/24/2021

RE: Under 19

steve of Los angeles, ca usa asks...

How common is it for a good referee to be a good-great CR, but a below average AR? As an AR, I find myself routinely losing focus and becoming bored, slacking on 2nd to last defender line, even zoning out on balls OOP on the touch line.

However, as a CR, I am super focused the entire time and feel I am a pretty good ref as I almost never get a peep from players/coaches even on the highest level games and have refs higher grades than me (I am still an 8 after many years, long story) compliment my refereeing. I feel this is much more representative of your referee skills, as an AR can easily slack and even be bad in a match and no one will truly know.

Is a referee moving through the ranks as an exceptional CR but truly mediocre AR a possibility? Or are there so many good refs who can do both out there that having one who is deficient at one aspect is a complete deal-breaker?

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Steve
You are not alone in this. I know a good many referees who are mediocre assistants and vice versa of great assistants who are mediocre referees. I also know some referees who do not want to do AR roles and they are able to wriggle out of AR positions with a variety of excuses such as work, family etc.
This is in my opinion down to a persons skill set, thought process and makeup although it can be improved on.

You mention that as an AR you lose focus yet that does not happen as a referee and that is one of the reasons for average AR performances.
An assistant on the touchline when play is in the other half it can be easy to lose focus on the game and as a result when play swings around the AR can be caught off guard. Throw in some poor thinking into the mix and the AR performance can be average at best.

So to answer your question it is easily a possibility to progress through the ranks as an exceptional referee as a mediocre assistant. I think though that the opposite of that has its challenges as I have seen exceptional assistants get passed over as referees as they are thought of as assistants and first choice as an AR on every important game. Indeed I know some referees who have declined to do AR roles as they felt that they were seen as exceptional assistants and getting passed over as referees in their own right.

At the highest level of the game it has been recognised that the skill set of individuals suits either the referee role or the assistant role yet rarely both. Exceptional assistants have craved out significant progression on the line and that has been recognised with designation of FIFA badged Assistant Referee. Those individuals present all the requirements of being an exceptional assistant which include visual acuity, mental awareness and focus, understanding the AR role and importantly in the modern game sprinting ability including change of direction ability and sideways running.
On the last point I know referees who can run all day yet unable to sprint to keep up with quick forwards. A referee can speed up and lose up to 10 yards on a quick break yet that is not tenable for an exceptional assistant. Indeed I know some referees who have failed the FIFA AR sprinting test while passing the referee test. A FIFA referee is expected to cover 40 metres in 6 seconds while an assistant is expect to cover 36 metres in 10 secs of which 18 metres is sideways left and right.

Answer provided by Referee Peter Grove

Hi Steve,
I think it's just a part of human nature that certain individuals show more aptitude for one particular set of tasks than others.

This is as true of CR's and AR's as it is in other spheres.

Going back to the question of match officials, it is noticeable that in the PGMOL, most individuals are either CR's or AR's and very rarely if ever, perform the other role.

Answer provided by Referee Richard Dawson

Hi Steve,
the attention span of the CR is stimulated because he is following the ball whereas the AR is following the 2nd last defender. Now on occasion, they are both the same thing but not often. Even if we train to keep an eye out for behind-the-play actions, generally the ball is the magnet for excitement and the challenges center around its possession. So the CR is making a myriad of nonstop decisions to stop play, not stop, foul, no foul, talk a bit warn, look at ARs, listen to players, play advantage, trifling, doubtful, EVERYTHING a CR does is a focused decision weighing in on what is going on in front of them.

VAR can show a FACT of position by camera freeze so when an AR makes an error it is completely clarified not so much on the CR decision to award or not award a foul on a challenge where some ball was also contacted, it is more subjective to interpretation, not a completely YES or NO as is the AR offside decision as a fact of play. Just look a the focus of technology on AR decisions as VAR influences offside or non-offside calls if a ball goes into touch or over the goal line or across under the crossbar and between the posts for a goal, all AR responsibilities that are YES or NO decisions

The trust factor between ARS 4th and the CR is how well they mesh collectively by retaining their priorities and professionalism in their duties. Sometimes what goes on the FOP for the AR is easily managed because nothing tricky occurs, you are faster than the players, no alert defenders moving up but always hanging back thus offside rarely an issue or one team is dominating so 12 match you could be asleep the other 1/2 a constant fixture looking into the PA of the attacking 3rd. Your CR does not even look over at you thinking, I got this, you are so redundant. Paint drying would be better.

Personally, I dislike these approaches to boring soccer. It is both bad for developing the good necessary habits and disrespectful to the players. Any good CR should seek to involve their ARS. Eye contact, thumbs up, good job, anything happening I need to know? Are we good over there? Head nods, effective positioning, solid pregame, good halftime break chat, a proper postgame analysis

The #1 focus for the AR is 2nd last opponent got to stay with that for the full 90 minutes.
The #1 priority is always player safety.
The #1 duty for the AR, assists the referee!

The AR has a much harder job in that their focus is vitally important in the CRITICAL MATCH INCIDENTS of 1st offside positioning and 2nd offside involvement because most of the scoring reflects the importance of the definitions. As AR you miss the 1st then you will be wrong on the 2nd as well. The AR mental awareness and focus is a fundamental acceptance that their job is NOT the CR job, it is the AR job, and it has different components, not the least is the running and sprinting patterns and the fixation on the 2nd last opponent! That said it is not that the AR is not capable of recognizing a foul or communicating such to the referee or pointing out an error, it is just that is not their principal focus. They understand that their duty is to assist the referee so the match goes well. By performing their job well they can only enhance the CRs performance. FOCUS and speed staying with the 2nd last opponent for 90 plus minutes one of the very best was our own Canadian AR from Winnipeg. Hector Vergara spent 19 years on the FIFA list and was involved in 11 FIFA competitions. Three of those competitions were FIFA World Cups (2002, 2006 and 2010). Vergara claimed the record for most World Cup games as a referee/assistant referee at 14 when he took the field July 10, 2010 in the third-place play-off match between Uruguay and Germany at Port Elizabeth Stadium.

You make one wrong decision as AR you can change the outcome of the game. You can watch from afar for 15 minutes as the red team plays at the opposing end of the FOP when a long ball drops out in front of you being chased by a red and blue player and you have no idea WHO kicked the ball or where either of the two chasings were when the ball was kicked? Guess what, you failed your AR duties and you let your CR down.

Blue player is now on a break, red pull him down, the red player is red carded, red reduced by a player but blue was offside!!!
or
Blue goes onto score on the break but you flag for offside so no goal but blue was onside when he started his run.

In either case, your inattention has dramatically affected the match

For a referee to be an effective official, a natural leader requires a commanding attitude, good physical condition, a sense of empathy for the players, awareness of their positioning in the FOP, the ability to stay with play yet anticipate what might occur, good foul recognition, a true feel for the spirit of the LOTG, a thorough understanding of the application of those LOTG. Defining characteristics like the ability to remain calm under pressure, courage, to be aware & trust your gut instincts, to have a sense of humour. To project confidence to the players that you have their back, their safety! It is important to balance the self-confidence required to effectively manage tough situations but not project arrogance or mismanage your authority through prissy attitudes of disrespect. The hardest thing a referee has to do is set aside the ego that drove them to excel and want the responsibility of leadership but still allows the game to be the players' choice, not theirs!

I often despair at the World cup when I see really great referees have such difficulties because those in charge are micromanaging them from the pressures of expectations. Cards appearing out of nothingness due to being overly focused on what someone in authority has decided they must crack down on. Or chastising them for being too overbearing or too lenient either missing critical match incidents or failing to recognize their importance. They used to mix and match ARs 4ths and CRs from other nations but seem more concerned on forming national groupings

Cheers