Recent content by Russell Jones

Looking forward to lining to you next season hopefully 🤞😀

The issues are: 1) not all minor contact is automatically a foul 2) we are asked to consider the attacker’s motivations as well as the defender’s actions in order to reach a fair and balanced outcome Legs, arms, limbs, whatever 😊. You knew what I meant, even if I didn’t! For clarity, I...

If the striker naturally runs into the keeper's outstretched arms then it's a clear penalty. For me, if he naturally attempts to hurdle the arms but ends up falling over / stumbling, then I'd also be giving a penalty. In the OP, the unnatural actions of the striker give the referee a tricky...

Until a couple of years ago, it was highly unusual (certainly in my CFA) for any of the nominations to be rejected. More recently though, with a greater number of candidates attempting the jump and the minimum average assessment mark needed staying at 70, there was a short period where around a...

Hey Sam, I've just received the full list and I don't see your name in there on either the Successful or the Unsuccessful. Which suggests that either you weren't nominated by your CFA in the first place or you've somehow slipped through the net. Fingers crossed it works out well for you. More...

A new offside phase starts every time the ball is played or touched by an attacking player

If you genuinely believe that he has deliberately moved his arm toward the ball (post 15) then of course this should be given. If, however, you believe what you say in your first sentence above, then you absolutely can’t give this as handball in accordance with the laws. It is a fundamental...

My experiences are similar to yours James. I firmly believe that officials from the very top to the very bottom of our game have now been offered suitable and appropriate tools to keep Player Behaviour in check. Whilst the use of all of them is (like most of refereeing) an acquired skill, the...

There's often, with good reason, nervousness and distrust as to whether high profile PGMO led initiatives will in fact 'stick' or whether they will be briefly implemented and then quietly forgotten about. As such, the now two season long clampdown on Obvious Dissent and Delaying the Restart is...

As others have said, the 'offside' goal is, ultimately, legitimate. What's frustrating (for me) is that so much of the discussion has centred on the defender's deliberate play, which, in what can often be a very murky world of Deliberate vs Deflection, is about as Deliberate as we will ever...

I'm a referee tutor in Hertfordshire (may even have taken your course!) and also run the promotion scheme. Feel free to DM me with any questions :)

Obviously players and spectators want whatever is best for 'their' team in that particular situation and will change to the alternative point of view if the situation is reversed ... :rolleyes: :)

I believe the most up to date RPP promotion pack specifies 25 adult games (21+) for 6-5. Many of the criteria change from season to season, so could be you were sent / are working off an old booklet? If you can get in some more adult games before the next deadline (end Apr) then it may be that...

No job at Bletchley for you David … 😀

A 'light touch', 'minimal intervention' VAR is certainly (IMO) better than the lengthy delay, overly forensic approach. However, it exacerbates the issue where 'sub-optimal' subjective on field decisions get "confirmed" by VAR leading to (even more) outrage that the "correct" decision wasn't...