A&H

Cup Final - Match Officials

G

george.g

Active Member
Level 5 Referee
Evening.

I've just received initial confirmation of appointment as a referee to a Sunday League Cup Final. I'll be at an old Step 5 stadium, and I'm happy enough with the ground, match day prep etc. I've been on the line enough this season (including a county cup final) to have a good idea of what I want from my own assistants (although this will only be my 3rd time working with my own assistants), however I've also been given a 4th official, and I'm wondering what I should set out in my pre-match with them?

I'm only 16, and I'm the youngest referee on the league's roster, so also worried about seeming patronising in a way? I know all my other officials, and they're all great, so not overly concerned, but don't want to come across wrong.

Overall very happy with the appointment, but thought I'd share to celebrate, and also get some advice on working with a 4th.
 
The Referee Store
Congrats on your appointment.

I have often thought this about other officials, I don’t want to seem patronising. At the same time, most of them will expect you to be saying something so I don’t think it will be an issue.

I’m in the middle for a cup final this year and I’ll be saying to the 4th, enjoy it - you’re not there to defend me or defend the indefensible if I make a **** up! I’ll tell the managers that if they need to talk to you keep it short and snappy to allow you to be able to watch the game as much as possible. He will be in charge of subs, slow it down as much as possible give us all a break!

For a Sunday league cup final, I would keep it really simple and easy and let him enjoy it. Tough gig when you have teams that don’t usually have a 4th as they just moan at them constantly. I tell the 4th to deal manage that themselves, if they call me over it’s going to be a card.
 
I had some good advice from a level 3 I know regarding 4th officials.
It was quite simple.

He said to pick your battles as a 4th official.
I think that’s simple but is also quite effective.
 
Congratulations on your appointment. I did my first open adults grand final at the end of last season as a 17 year old and certainly found it both enjoyable and challenging. Reflecting on my own experience I would suggest the following which you can discuss with your team-
- be ready for heightened intensity and pressure from the get go and expect the teams to perform at a higher level than during the general season
- decide early the week before whether you are going to be using Comms and if so, make sure you have a good understanding of how the referee team will engage using this tool
- don’t worry too much about the 4th official - they should help you manage subs, the bench and provide additional support if needed. In my final it all got a bit nasty both on field and in the crowd - so I was definitely glad to have the bigger referee team at half time.
As others have said the most important thing is to try to enjoy the experience - just keep your wits about you and be ready for the step up. It’s sheep stations and you can be caught by surprise…
 
You need to tell them that you want from them in terms of managing the benches, and at that level it will be realistically just managing substitutions. You can ask them to manage the technical areas, but in reality you will be dealing with teams that have never had assistant referees before, let alone a 4th official, so there has to be an element of realism.
 
In addition to the above good advice, I'd be asking two things of my fourth official in any cup match, especially a final:
1) Be 100% certain who is on the pitch if / when it goes to penalties
2) Keep a good enough record of additional time that when you decide to play (say) four minutes additional, they can factually defend that to one manager who thinks it's too little and one who thinks it's too much!!
 
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