|
|
At our January meeting we welcomed Larkspur’s
secretary and U21 manager Dave Virgo. He thanked the meeting for giving him
the opportunity to provide club feedback in an unheated forum.
First Things First
Dave emphasised the importance of first impressions (music to the ears of all trainers, who frequently mention this: here you have it from the horse’s mouth!) On Consistency There is no consistency with pre-match checks: some referees don’t bother with net or pitch checks; boot and jewellery checks are done with varying degrees of thoroughness. There is no consistency with the instructions referees give to club assistants. Dave thought it would be easier for all concerned if club assistants were asked to do the same thing week in, week out. |
|
The RA Conference - Rafah Hanna Rafah Hanna, a relatively recent recruit to the world of refereeing, spoke briefly to the meeting about his experience at last year’s RA conference in Warwick. There were lots of prominent officials present and lots of interactive presentations. This year’s event is in Solihull and is the centenary conference with big names being lined up including FA chairman Geoff Thompson and a referee some of you might have heard of: Pierluigi Collina. "Very highly recommended" says Rafah.
|
Are you allowing too long
with the advantage clause before pulling play back, the advantage not
having accrued? On Parents Dave acknowledged there is much that clubs and leagues can do with regard to the behaviour of parents; they often don’t know the laws, especially regarding offside and thus don’t understand why referees give the decisions they do. He felt parental misbehaviour should be penalised, something supported by members in attendance. On Referees He warmly welcomed new and younger referees into the game but wondered whether they were sometimes put in charge of games that were too tough or important for them early in their careers. Dave would like the chance to work more closely with referees. In particular he would like to be able to talk with refs at half- and full-time, in a sensible manner of course! In summing up Dave noted he had recently seen a referee who had met all his criteria for first impressions, consistency, application of law and approach to the game, players and club officials. So it can be done guys!
|
