RESPECT CAMPAIGN

[Referee]

HAD A REALLY INTERESTING REFEREE'S ASSOCIATION MEETING THE OTHER NIGHT (CCFA OFFICIALS TURNED UP) AND THEN HAD A MORE FIERY DEBATE ON THIS SUBJECT IN THE PUB LAST NIGHT (ANY EXCUSE FOR A LOCK-IN)

IF QUALITY MANAGERS LIKE PAUL JEWELL, DAVID MOYES AND MARK HUGHES (WHO ALLEGEDLY HAVE SIGNED UP TO THE RESPECT PROGRAMME) STILL THINK IT'S OK TO BROADCAST THEIR OPINIONS OF POOR OFFICIATING THEN HOW WILL THE RESPECT CAMPAIGN EVER PROGRESS TOWARDS THE LOWLY LEAGUES WHERE I AND MY COLLEAGUES OFFICIATE ??

THEY ARE ALL MISSING THE MOST VITAL POINT OF THE WHOLE PROGRAMME WHICH IS......(DRUM ROLL).......

THE REFEREE IS HUMAN AND IS GUARANTEED TO GET DECISIONS WRONG OCCASIONALLY AND THIS IS WHAT YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO RESPECT.

RESPECTING THE REFEREE WHEN HE'S HAD A GOOD GAME IS NOT WHAT ALL THE FUSS IS ABOUT - IT'S ABOUT THE REF MAKING A DECISION, OR NOT MAKING A DECISION THAT YOU DISAGREE WITH.

THIS IS THE EXACT POINT, WHEN THE REF IS HAVING A NIGHTMARE, THAT THE RERSPECT CAMPAIGN KICKS IN.

UNTIL FOOLPROOF TECHNOLOGY COMES IN OUR DIRECTION, WE ARE STILL STUCK WITH SELF MOTIVATED PART-TIMERS LIKE MYSELF IN THE MIDDLE TRYING TO KEEP THE GAME GOING AS WELL AS WE CAN.

SORRY TO MOAN, BUT THOSE THAT SHOW LITTLE OR NO RESPECT ARE STILL FAR AND FEW BETWEEN AND I STILL LOOK FORWARD TO EACH AND EVERY MATCH THAT I GET GIVEN.

THE ONLY SHAME IS THAT WE STILL SEE THE GUYS AT THE TOP OF OUR GAME SHOWING LITTLE OR NO RESPECT ON NATIONAL TV AND IT CASCADES DOWN ALL THE WAY DOWNHILL TO THE LOWER ECHELONS OF DUCHY FOOTBALL WHERE THE REST OF US LIVE.

[oldasitgets]

I went to a briefing for Leagues on the "Respect" programme.

Anyone who has come across me, either at a match or through the forum, will know how strongly I support referees and condemn the current poor attitude towards officials by clubs and players.

However, and it's an enormous HOWEVER, I was incredibly disappointed in the content of the briefing and the "Respect" initiative. I even read the booklet several times to see if I'd missed something. At the meeting it was confirmed that I had missed nothing.

The main thrust seems to be to condemn the lack of respect shown. And that's it.

Nothing else.

The only slightly new feature is to suggest that only the Captain should be allowed to question the referee's decisions. (I actually believe that this is a step backwards - no-one should be allowed to question referees' decisions.)

Sanctions against clubs that don't do the "Respect" thing are mentioned. But it is made clear that no one has decided what they may be or how they'll be administered.

There are, of course, no rewards considered for clubs that do behave.

So, if I run a club that has developed ways of bullying and intimidating referees and opponents, has realised that it actually improves results, Why on earth should we change? (My club is NOT in that category)

Sorry, but the F.A. has spent (wasted) millions on a campaign that has not been thought through. There is no question that urgent action is needed. It has been needed for years. But this is not going to make a blind bit of difference.

Unless the F.A. get busy and add some teeth and rewards. Allow (mandate) Leagues to dock points against offending clubs.(That'll work instantly!)

Reward clubs with no disciplinary points with real cash instead of wasting it on glossy brochures and meetings that spend two hours condemning evil - and suggesting no way of combating it.

The "Respect" campaign is so empty that it makes our modest scheme in the West Cornwall Sunday League (Real rewards and real sanctions) look light years ahead.

I did make my feelings absolutely clear at the briefing. Geoff Lee, the new County Chairman did his best, but he acknowledged some of the shortcomings that the F.A. hadn't bothered to address.

[Stig]

READ THIS

[isaac rosenberg]

I thought Bennett's final comment summed up the limitation of F.A.thinking. Heavier penalties for misconduct as a deterrent, as most criminologists would recognise, do not change societies for the better.

Bookings have increased, yet the game is no cleaner than it was in the days of Tommy Smith and Norman Hunter. The media focus on every gesture (Drogba, Norris etc) and put players under a pressure never before experienced. Bennett epitomises the tendency in refereeing to call attention to oneself rather than letting the players get on with the game that most of the best local refs eschew. I was speaking recently to a very good one from the Football league who acknowledged after a Combo game with one booking that he would have been forced to dish out six yellows and a red, had he been televised or officially observed. As a club secretary, my heart and wallet used to sink when we saw an F.A.observer arrive, because they act like debt collectors for High Cross Street in a couple of cases.

The F.A.jumps submisively on to whichever government bandwagon rolls ( anti-racism, anti-sexism, CRB, anti-swearing, etc) and for a while that is the Big Thing. Then it rolls away and another one rolls in. At this level, the FA is rich and many clubs are poor.

Of course we should respect referees. At a local level, the few, who are regularly not only incompetent, but driven by petty self-importance, a little brief authority and a fragile ego, and sometimes a historical, parochial bias , spoil it for the many. The best refs.....Peter Grenfell and Steve Rose are good examples....do not seek to divert attention from the players to themselves. The late jack Taylor suggested that his best games were the ones in which he was invisible.

No disrespect to you, Stig....you are a fine ref and correspondent on this forum. Where I am sure that we woukld agree is that standards of referees and their training and updating needs to be much, much better. [perhaps that is where some of the CCFA fine money could be diverted, istead of into putting up the wife in a hotel on Jersey !

[Guest]

Every referee and every player will make mistakes during a match, that is pretty obvious. The problem comes when referees and linesman get the major decisions wrong. Managers will have their rant - although they shouldn't become abusive when they get a decision wrong. The problem comes when a referee gets the obvious MAJOR decisions wrong. But then no matter what the evidence they stick to the party line.

It was a long time ago when I was whistle blower and I have said it on this web site before. I went out on to the pitch looking to control a good game and to keep players on the pitch. I would tell both teams and managers before a game that I will make mistakes and hopefully not too many. If I felt I got something wrong I didn't act like a prison warder or a police officer by laying down the law. I would try to defuse the situation by saying something like 'Sorry lads didn't see it', or 'That’s the way I saw it', or my mistake, sorry guys got it wrong'.

And it does not matter at what level you play - the latter was the most important thing I could say. I made a lot of friends by trying to be honest, fair and genuine. And yes I was always in trouble with the authorities who reacted now as they did then that I was weak and not in control of a game. Strange that, not filling the coffers with yellow and red card fines. My job was to control the game in a fair manner and not behave like a traffic policeman.

And yes I gave up the whistle to go back to playing. How many times (alright none of you) have said that when they genuinely got it wrong SORRY. It happens. It’s like B Manning who said he would never go into the dressing rooms before a match for a very quick chat. And what the hell was that quote NO ONE SHOULD QUESTION A REFEREE'S DECISION. May I remind you this is not a police state, if a player says 'you must be joking he fouled me', or ' I never touched him ref' and so on. Provided there is no abuse there is no problem

THE WHOLE POINT IS THIS

It is how you as a match referee control a football match to the best of your ability by having an affinity with players. I didn't get it right all the time but what I did get was RESPECT. Oooooooooops how silly of me I have actually told you what respect is all about.

In a way I feel sorry for referees nowadays because they are not allowed to referee games in the way they should be. It’s more a question of rules is rules or I should say the laws of the game is the laws of the game. It’s the extra unwritten law that has disappeared and that is the COMMON SENSE law you know the one that earns match officials RESPECT.

And the easiest way to earn that is to say to the ranting savages that seem to be sat in the dug outs. Tell them waht you expect from the dug out and if there is a case of ABUSE then get rid of them from the dig out. That will solve much of what is wrong with football today. And earn you RESPECT. Oooooooops said it again.

[Mr Cornwall]

i think the respect campaign has been absolutely shocking for both higher level and county level football.

i seen managers still getting sent to the stands in the premiership. one named manager already david moyes and mark hughes etc.

i was glad to the point on match of the day 2 where they had paul durkin on to assess refereeing decisions. this made me think it would be good to have a referee representative every week on the show to discuss their decisions and other games as well.

but the respect for the cornwall fa games will never have respect, reason being club linesman take the time to help both clubs as well as the referee and all we ever get is shit from the other manager and the opponents.

example: i assisted the game v millbrook on saturday v callington and i got absolute shit from the manager and the players after they argued an offside decision which members of the crowd had said i made the correct decision. i was about 10-15 yards further from the dugouts so the management had no view of the incident. then the ref came over and stuck by my decision. rest of the game i was being wound up and spoken to with personal insults. one of their players got booked after the ref consulted me after i was swore at. so i think referees have been great this season if only club linesman were stronger.

this should not be happening and even after the game the millbrook manager still came into the dressing room and swore at the ref, how respectful is that. so after the game and i returned home i wrote to the county fa to report millbrook, standing my ground, supporting the referee. i wish all others would do the same. at least people can get punishsed and learn from their lesson.

[truros mr mourinho]

the refs are only human,dont be silly :clapper: