Moving away

Hi, I've moved my blog to WordPress: www.refrod.wordpress.com and still writing in English. So, if you are interested, check me out at the new blog spot!

Red card crisis

A beautiful day last weekend. Sun gets the chance to warm things up again. Football game in totally different setting. Short sleeves, spectators bathing in sunshine. Everyone happy. Game not too difficult. Green vs. Red. Had one major error. Should have watched the players getting to their positions again and adapt my free kick direction..... But I was stubborn and gave free kick to wrong team. For the rest, two yellows for too much force.

And then. 2nd half, 45th minute. Extra time because of some injuries. Player gets tackled and should be cautioned. I run to the situation and about to pull the card when the attacked player decides to show his anger in a physical way and head-buts the opponent. In a split second I decided to prioritize and give red first. Player takes his loss and runs off the pitch before I can take his number. 21 players (and the home team assistant ref) jump on me and start yelling and asking for explanation. It's so typical. Everyone knows red is correct (including the 30 odd spectators watching the scene from 5 meters!).
The only thing that is nagging me is who was the attacking player. He silently sneaked off. I stead of saying "I want the red carded player back (to take his number) I shout "I take the card back". More confusion. Reds yelling "ref takes card back". Player comes running back and I take his number to tell him he stays off. Stupid scene. Reds yelling he was attacked and the green player should be carded too. They were right, but I want to finish this game and not have to go through checking the other players number. In hindsight, this guy had been cautioned and should have been given his second yellow, so red too.

Conclusion: ref, you are on your own. Don't expect anyone to help you. Make up your mind on what you see, take notes first, who did what, the minute, the numbers. Add it up and show cards where necessary and walk away. I started with showing the red first and allowed an eruption of emotion which hindered me in finishing this event properly. let the game play on for 2 minutes to calm down and ended it.
Marked in my report that red carded player was provoked and I forgot to shown the attacking player his card, which probably should have been red too. Let them sort it out.
Back to work. It's Monday.

reffing a scrimmage game

Last weekend, all games in my area were cancelled due to frozen soccer fields and approaching snow showers. The local soccer club with a brand new astro turf field organised scrimmages instead. If I could do the first one at 10AM. Well prepared dressed in thermo shirt and turtle neck shirt I showed up at the field. The same level U18 team from a neighbouring city was invited and ready, working on their warming up. But where was the home team? 8 of them were drinking coffee, waiting for the rest, still in bed, assuming no games were on.
At 10AM sharp, only 10 players came running on the pitch. We agreed to reduce the game time with 10 minutes in order to make it for the next game. The away team coach wasn't happy. His team was on time and wanted to play the full 90.

Warming up pays off. The home team clearly didn't do their preps well and wasn't ready and had an early goal. The temperature went down and it started snowing. Important to keep moving as ref. Poor goalies!
I was happy we shortened the game time. THe next two games got worse weather with more snow. If you ask me, next weekend is out again. New snow and frost are on the attack. Hey, it's winter. Let's wait till March and start again. Just like in the US.

Football means Foot Ball

For those who are still wondering how to keep apart soccer from football, here is a simple image to explain! It also implies a change of sports term.....

Winter break almost over

It´s time we bring on the players again. Snow is gone (for now) and the soil should be defrosted by next Saturday. I started to make my runs after being forced to stay indoors since mid December. Ref training starts again tomorrow, so that comes just in time. I joined a national ref congress last weekend and learned more about how professional refs work in their signals, coordination, preparation, rule interpretation etc. Quite interesting.

First Red this season

My first red card this season is a fact. I'm not a red-card-ref. Yellow when really necessary to control a game or a player, but red? Hardly ever. But it's good you got those cards in your pocket. Strangely enough it wasn't a match I could predict to go wrong. Two teams I never reffed before on a new location in an A'dam suburb.

The pitch was just ok to play, soaked with rain from the last two weeks. Players from the away team wishing me luck at the start. It couldn't be more appropriate.
Final score reached by the end of first half: 1-3. Second half, the home tried to do something about it and started using the see-how-far-you-can-go method. Well, this ref pulls the cards when asked for. In total 6 yellows, equally divided between the two teams. Another record so far. Mostly for tackles, missing the ball and hitting another player. Most cards were accepted and once carded, the player took care not to get second one, so that helped.

But there is another category of players like this one (home team) player who kept talking to me. Asking for explanations, pointing at possible time delay of the game by the winning team, pulling shirts just not too heavy enouth to be carded. I had indicated he was about to be. Then in the 80th minute, it happened. The away team defender tried to clear a ball and my talking-head player just went in there with no reserve or effort to play the ball - just blocking the other player. This guy was just catapulted in the air and screaming of pain. A little fight was about to erupt as his colleagues came to his defense. I didn't blink and pulled the red card. You - out. I don't want to see you again! The home team dug-out exploded. Why now and not yellow first? Why red while it's not that heavy? What did he do to be awarded red after all? etc.etc.
Another 10 gruelling minutes followed. Every call I made was wrong (for the home team of course) and I completely ruined their game. Yeh, right.

Blowing the whistle for the last time, I walked off the pitch and the home team - apart from a few sensible guys - didn't even thank me. The shouting and swearing home coach just shook hands and when I told him his behavior was deplorable, he refused to talk to me. Surprisingly, the red-carded player started talking to me again, telling me I just had to say how stupid I was to card him. Everyone saw it was a mistake on my behalf, and just me poor ref didn't want to acknowledge that. I told him my decision stood as a rock and the more we talked about it, the more I was convinced of his red card.

Paperwork was not even handled properly, which is remarkable for a game at this level (maybe it's the club's way for working). The home team didn't bother to check things and I was offered a drink by the away-coach. While talking about the incident, this coach nodded and tried to tell me something. The red-carded player was sitting next to me at the club's bar. What a joke, I hadn't noticed. We got talking (again) and it turned out it wasn't his first red card this season and he just was frustrated for having to sit out another 3 games or so. AHA. So I wasn't the first ref who he got mad. Good for my report to the soccer association.

But he insisted this wasn't red. So, it was a foul after all? Yes, probably. But red? Well, without having an alternative neutral opinion (let alone video), it's just me my friend to report it and your action doesn't even have a description on the form. We will have to invent one just for you. The only thing you can do is counter my opinion and try to lower the 3 games suspension by sending in your own report. My guess - his name will switch on some red lights at the soccer association and his suspension will be max after the previous cards and warnings.

All in all, a lesser experience after doing such a great series of games with positive reports on game control.

are tackles allowed?

Last weekend it was my turn to ref a local derby again. this time two neighboring towns, both low ranking teams in the Saturday 4th league in North Holland. It had been raining quite a bit the days before, but on Saturday it was dry and despite a soaked football field, the game was on. Within 20 minutes, the grass pitch wasn't even anymore and every turn a football shoe made resulted in another bump. Terrible for a good football match of course.

Knowing this was a derby and both teams didn't avoid the personal contact, I decided to take breaks at certain fouls. You get the usual comments, but I ignore them, just showing them this can't be tolerated. But I'm pretty leanient on the tackles, as long as they are targeted at the ball and not the legs. When tackles are performed from the front or sideways, a player can jump or step away. As soon as a player is attacked and the attacker has no chance or reaching the ball, a warning is given. In my opinion, the game had several of these actions, but were always on the ball and I allowed most of them.

Afterwards, the paperwork and drinks resulted in a small discussion on tackles. Guess who brought it up? The loosing team, of course. Too many tackles with stretched legs was the argument. I pointed out that any tackle as long as it's aimed at the ball, can be with (one) stretched leg. It shouldn't be too high and the studs shouldn't point straight forward, but while trying to regain the ball, I will allow it. After all the calls for less severe refereeing (don't stop for every push), tackles were supposed to be stopped? I can predict the debates during the game. "I was going for the ball ref" etc.
I know it's a ref's tightrope and injuries are easily made when timing is bad or studs are pointed forward. But on grass, this is what football is all about, apart from scoring goals.
Maybe I should invite somebody to film the next game and have me check my decisions in hindsight. Any volunteers?