The Ref Stop

Season review 24/25

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R

Refollie

Well-Known Member
Level 5 Referee
Well, for those of us in the UK it’s that time of year. Would love to hear a brief review of how the season went from anyone who wants to share.

Overall I think it was my most confident year as a referee and that has really helped with my match control and developing a good rapport with teams. I was appointed to two league cup finals but unfortunately both were postponed to dates I was working so I had to pull out - better luck next year!

Middles: 34
Lines: 8

🟨: 96
🟥: 8

Time to put the feet up until July.
 
The Ref Stop
Middles - 100
Lines - 6

🟥 6
🟨 35

All middles were youth games except 2, usually U15,U16 or U18

Was my 2nd full season this time round after being a ref in my youth. Was very busy as I was reffing Saturdays and Sundays, whilst also arranging my sons games on both days as an U18 ref.

I feel that I have developed so much as a ref and my management of games in much better.

Was the middle for a county cup final, and also was the middle for 2 league cup finals.
 
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Middles - 24
Lines - 6

🟥 1
🟨 36 (6 sin bins)

Two league cup final appointments, an FA Cup extra-prelim AR appointment back in August, and ended the season with promotion to L5. 🥳

It was my 3rd full season, and after a 'difficult' 2nd season, I feel my match control and ability to sense/manage 'danger' is so much better now. Really happy with my season.

My shift work means I can only really do 30 weekends a season, so I'm unsure whether I will ever be able to make the jump from L5-L4 purely from a commitment basis, but I'd really like to give it a go. Something for me to ponder!
 
2nd season, first in OA football, stats below.

4 semis and a final. Had some extremely challenging games this season and thought about packing it in a few times. Decided to carry on and just bin youth games though. Had some great games and also some where I dropped the odd clanger. The important thing is that I learned something from every one. Officiated with a few former PL/ EFL officials, and was praised by a current FIFA AR after a development session at my RA so obviously not doing too bad 😂
Just missed my 7-6 due to injuries and time commitments, so hoping to finish it next season.
 
2 reds and 15 cautions, with 6 of those coming in the last game of the season (potential title decider).

Long held ambition achieved (there’s a thread on this!) to boot.

Moved over completely from mentoring to match day coaching and that’s the best decision I’ve made all season. MDC is giving me the job satisfaction and fulfilment that mentoring never did, and that is exclusively down to the fact that referees are actually interested in what’s being said. Rather than asking for a mentor and being “too busy” to talk through matches or have to get to other games etc. No longer feeling the frustration at wasted time.
 
36 middles
87 🟨 10 🟥 (8 across 3 games)

20 AR & 1x 4O

Few highlights:
Biggest crowd just over 2.3k as an AR1
County Cup Final AR
Step 5 Play Off AR
'Step 7' Main Cup SF R
'Step 7' Supplementary Cup F 4O

Awaiting outcome of 5-4.
 
If you'd have offered me a year ago after a real struggle of a first half a season at L3 after mid season promotion to be in the position I'm in now, I'd have bitten your arm off.

Was just discussing with @JamesL the contacts I can now call on the advice of thanks to CORE and local CPD events and I had one poor observation out of 7 (and I can accept that as deserved) which probably cost me a shot at an assessment day, but that's a hell of a lot better than where I was a year ago. All this despite at least 2 months out injured from a fractured metatarsal.

Season finished with 23 MOAS appointment middles, 1 of which I had an English FIFA AR on my line for. 2 County cup middles including the Senior Cup final middle which I had an overseas FIFA AR on my line for. 8 AR appointments and 6 4th official jobs including a step 3 playoff semi final with a 2800 sell out crowd.

All in all, very happy and excited for the future.

P.S. no idea how many cards, but I am a busy b*stard.
 
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18 Middles / 29 Lines / 2 4ths
2 Pens
48 🟨
5 🟥

Probably the least amount of games I've ever completed in a season, but midseason promotion can more than make up for that. " county Semi-Finals and 1 county final to cap off a season that feels like my most confident. Watched my first game this season. back last week and compared it to the most recent and it almost looks like two completely different officials.

First season with CORE and it has helped so much with my development so fingers crossed for next season.
 
15 Middles / 6 Lines / 1 4th
No clue how many pens!
19 🟨
3 🟥 (all in one game!)

Limited on games due to taking every other weekend off to support my new family, capped it off with a county cup final middle though!

Most of these are Women's matches, hence the lower card numbers than you'd think. All open age.

A crowd of over 6000 in that game where I was 4th, and a Women's FA cup line in the proper rounds!
 
This Season has arguably been my best so far. My fitness, and Match Control have come on leaps and bounds. Got one final middle in my local Step 7 league on Saturday, but here's the rest of my season's stats.

Matches: 35 (Not including youth football)
28 Middles & 7 Lines
🟨 47
🟥 6 (3 in cup finals in the last month)

3 Cup Final Middles (County Cup, Step 7 League & Sunday League) & 1 on the Line (Also Sunday League)

And to top it all off, Promotion to Level 5.

Really happy with how it's gone. Time to get my final game of the season out of the way and prepare for next year!
 
Year three and first full year of Open Age.

As others who are in the first few years of their refereeing journey have said, I've come on so much as a referee over the course of the season, and even when I drop an occasional clanger or have an especially challenging game, I'm much better equipped from a technical and psychological perspective and feel in control.

This forum has played an important role in my continued improvement so a big thank you to everyone one here, alongside the feedback from my two MDC visits and my own commitment to learn and improve.

Whilst it hasn't effected me, I've largely binned off youth football except U18s, with coaches and parents increasingly unable to behave or demonstrate a willingness to instil the correct values into their players - it's only a small example but handshakes in age groups from U13 to U16 are largely non-existent.

46 middles, 4 AR (20 Open Age, 30 Youth)
68 🟨 3 🟥 7 Sin Bins
Promoted to Level 6, on L6 to L5 pathway
1 x League Cup Final AR, 1 x U18 League Cup Final AR, 2 x SF Middle, 2 x SF AR
 
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Tonight is (probably) my final game of 24-25:
  • 16 pre-season friendlies, and then...
  • 122 matches plus six 6s tournaments
  • 86 Middles, 27 AR, 2 Fourth Official, plus 7 as Mentor/MDC
  • Of those 86 middles, 21 at my highest Step: 62 YC, 3 RC, 10 Pens
  • YC and Penalties split equally... plus 2 home reds, 1 away (all for S7).
  • Cup Finals of U18, U23, Divisional, League, and County. Set complete.
 
Archer said:
Tonight is (probably) my final game of 24-25:
  • 16 pre-season friendlies, and then...
  • 122 matches plus six 6s tournaments
  • 86 Middles, 27 AR, 2 Fourth Official, plus 7 as Mentor/MDC
  • Of those 86 middles, 21 at my highest Step: 62 YC, 3 RC, 10 Pens
  • YC and Penalties split equally... plus 2 home reds, 1 away (all for S7).
  • Cup Finals of U18, U23, Divisional, League, and County. Set complete.
Click to expand...
Wonder who the referee is tonight....
 
Archer said:
Tonight is (probably) my final game of 24-25:
  • 16 pre-season friendlies, and then...
  • 122 matches plus six 6s tournaments
  • 86 Middles, 27 AR, 2 Fourth Official, plus 7 as Mentor/MDC
  • Of those 86 middles, 21 at my highest Step: 62 YC, 3 RC, 10 Pens
  • YC and Penalties split equally... plus 2 home reds, 1 away (all for S7).
  • Cup Finals of U18, U23, Divisional, League, and County. Set complete.
Click to expand...
Should be some half decent prizes on Forecast Fifties...
 
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