The men's and woman's leagues here on the Sunshine Coast have a shortage of referees this season. We don't get no respect! The refs list has only a few names on it and some of the veterans have opted not to suit up on Sundays. One elder ref told me while he was willing to officiate the odd women's game, but that he had abandoned the men's division because of the constant griping at him on the field and from the sidelines. Experienced as he is at ignoring the dramatics of others, he had reached his limit.
Nothing in the game of football, except perhaps outright violence, wears down the spirit of a referee more than the negativity we encounter from players. The overall tendency is to oppose the referee, and in football terms, such opposition is called dissent. Dissent ranges from the quietly annoying verbal/physical protestations to outright yelling and unanswerable queries.
To support the official, the laws of the game were created to govern each match. In law 12, fouls and misconducts, it states that protesting a referee's decision by word and/or gesture will cost the offender a verbal warning known as a caution, indicated by the referee who holds a yellow card high in the air for all to see. If a player continues in a dissenting manner, they are shown another yellow card that then changes to red like a stoplight, meaning an ejection from the game: time to go home and cut the grass. In fact, stoplights were the inspiration for designing this simple form of communication between referees, players and technical staff, commonly known as the card system. While famed British referee Ken Aston is often noted as its founder, first utilized at the World Cup in 1970, and worldwide as late as 1992, it was his wife who brought the idea to his attention while driving home after a game. Behind every successful man, there is a woman rolling her eyes! Cards, however, rarely stop chronic complainers, as they seem unable to keep quiet.
Historically, discussion was a big part of the gentleman's game, yet players have not been allowed to protest the decisions by the official since the late 1800s. Back then, two umpires were employed to make decisions referring to the referee only if they could not agree. The referee stood on the touch-line keeping time, much like today's fourth official. But the process to appeal unfavourable decisions was unimaginably lengthy, and by 1891, the lawmakers made a quantum restructuring leap, granting a single person the power to send players off, as well as give penalties and free kicks without listening to any appeals. The sole referee was born and became a permanent fixture in the game, while the two umpires were made assistant referees, suffering a bit of a demotion.
Today's game, however is a different one, in our age of instant s-l-o-w m-o-t-i-o-n replays. Many of us are now expert couch referees, expecting perfection in the big game and bringing it to the recreational leagues on the weekends. And forget that football will always and forever be a game of truth-telling angles that even a bevy of cameras cannot always capture. Remembering the criticism endured by our finest referees in Germany's World Cup this year brings to mind that if we truly understood their pressure, preparation and physical and psychological scrutiny, we would not be so critical of those referees, but would be in awe! Under those circumstances, we couch refs would find it hard to muster the air to blow the whistle for kick-off!
But if we don't respect refs at the highest level, how can we change our attitudes at the community level? How do we bring back those referees?
Perhaps the most effective way to curb dissent and griping in our Coast leagues is as FIFA suggests: let the captain handle it. "Calm down guys, play fair, it is just a game, let the ref call it!" And don't forget it is the coach's responsibility to control the sidelines and the fans. The team effort works in many situations, on and off the field of play. Certainly our expanding soccer family is calling for a shift in attitude towards the officials, asking us to mature, in the same way a few years back they pleaded with referees to call a safer game. As we develop as individuals, word will spread, and why not strive to be a shining example of sportsmanship here on the Coast? The side effect is happier day at the pitch!
In the end, time, the great pacifier, will bring back some of the absentee referees, hopefully for the second half of the season - and if that doesn't work, maybe a raise? See you on the field!
