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First 11-a-side of the season. Tasty winter league, minus one, 5-5 first half. Home are 5-6 down, 2 mins to go, fast break, reckless cynical hack just inside the away half. Reckless and SPA. Attacker down injured, second yellow for defender. I blow for the foul. Coach goes ballistic as the...

Great OP! Well done. Often match control isn’t about the fouls you give, it’s the things you don’t give and how you communicate those. You don’t need to punish trifling contact to keep control. Think about how you show players you are “in the game”: yes, seen it, not enough for me, small...

Really great show. Whole thing was excellent!

Serious 14 year olds, remember you are not there to coach them or parent them. You can be empathetic but stand up straight and find your voice. Be clear and firm.

This is a topic that varies hugely from league to league. It’s really good to know what the coaches are used to, and also know the “best practice” without going over the top - especially if you aspire to keep going higher. I always make sure I cover any topics and any Q&A the same with both...

I forgot about this. It also seemed totally unnecessary and snide.

Great post. I was watching and it was weird! The other moment that struck me for RefChat analysis was: throw in taken, second ball is thrown on the field, not interfering with play, whistle blows, throw in is retaken. Wrong in law as should be a dropped ball right? Unless we think the referee...

Absolutely bang on. Where I am it is a mercifully small number and they stand out a mile. Worst I have experienced was at mid-level international youth tournaments. Last week’s ref syndrome is really important here. We must act and discipline coaches appropriately. Even if it means abandonment...

I start both watches before the whistle. Back up GPS tracker first Ref watch second Then blow I know the back up is 3-4 secs ahead at least. But sometimes both watches are out by more if there is nonsense at the kick off - such as if players drift into the wrong half and need “help”. Not...

In grassroots matches with one referee, in tournaments, or when there is a queue of matches… with flying subs… it makes sense to let the teams choose their takers from the whole team. It’s simpler, faster, better. With flying subs the ref does not have a record of the 11 on the field. At full...

Subtle difference between repeat subs (with proper ball out of play, and logged) and flying subs (with ball in play and not logged by the referee)… perhaps explains.

One of the saddest things about (men’s football) is the homophobia and (the miracle) that only a handful of pro players have ever come out. My experience of refereeing and meeting referees from around europe has been really positive in that I have met many referees comfortable with being out in...

Jamie Redknap on Sky great clip going around. Basically says the abuse of MO is out of order, the castigation/polarization has to stop, if he had a match tomorrow he’d want MO on the whistle. Hats off Jamie!

Maybe if PGMOL didn’t make up their own rules they wouldn’t stick their referees in it so often.

At grassroots, for a referee working alone, especially if there is a lot of action on the field, this can be very difficult to deal with. I know some very good senior referees, in “bags on the sideline” games, they will say, this is not important, focus on the match, don’t go creating...

I think RC is OK but it’s not consistent or expected based on the prem and refereering in the prem this season. Tough one for MO in real time but if he goes yellow I think there’s no drama. Given the safety net of VAR and the wider context it looks like this was not smart refereeing. Shame as...

Well done. Do more matches! Volunteer to work as AR to watch and learn from more experienced refs! Come back and tell how you are doing 🤩

I am in another country where football culture is different and we have a lot more rolling subs at grassroots and up into more serious leagues than the UK and have had for decades. Penalty shoot outs in grassroots cup competitions and end of season playoffs are incredibly rare. It’s up to the...

Calm down!

In grassroots rolling subs cup matches with penalties - a few years ago our FA saved us from this - so that any player or sub could take penalties and the takers did not need to be listed to or by the referee beforehand. Far less hassle. Far quicker. The caretaker wants to go home and turn the...