A&H

After-Match Fight

GraemeS

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Level 5 Referee
So I had a bit of a fight kick off after my match today. Match was OK for the 90 minutes - Nothing in the first half at all, 2 "orange" yellows and a PI caution for the home team, a dissent yellow and an AA for a reaction to one of the tackles for the away team. Home team ended up winning comfortably.

After the match, I watch the players off the pitch and went through the handful of handshakes, all seemed to be OK. I walk to the front of the building by the pitch to change my boots, the players start to walk round the side I hear some shouting and some of the spectators that had followed calling me over. I walked over to see a few players/coaches from each side holding each other back and although there's obviously been some kind of incident, I don't really see anything significant myself.

But after this, the away manager calls me over and walks me through the series of events from his perspective, including the opposing manager going forehead to forehead with him, the opposing captain threatening one of his players and another player grabbing him by the throat. He claimed to have a league committee meeting coming up this week where he intends to raise a complaint about the home team (apparently they have a pattern of complaints), and one of the spectators also took a video of the fight and was asking where she should email the video to.

So my question is really, how much (if any) of the above should I report? I don't have first-hand evidence of anything other than a few unnamed players being held back from each other, but surely if the manager does raise a genuine complaint, I should at least report the little I did see, and possibly his allegations as well? Also, I assume if I did write a report it would be a proper misconduct report via Wholegame - is there anything I should put in the comments section of the league report form?
 
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The chances of you wishing my input are as rare as Brigadoon, but my take on this for anybody else listening is, get to your room, shut your door and leave them to it

Do your bit on the pitch, make sure everything looks ok as you say you did, and unless its battle royale taking place on your shoe laces then be gone.

the very most you can do if you are in times to come asked to comment on events, is say "I was made aware of something happening but from my vantage point am sorry I cannot provide actual evidence on this occasion myself"

extreme, but as i like to cover most angles, you need to also be aware someone someday might class what happened as assault or so on, and, call it a cop out if you wish, it for me, makes more sense to have nothing to say here......
 
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I was once taught something by a level 3 referee. We were walking back in at full time when it became clear it was all kicking off in the tunnel. I made to go in there at which point he said along the lines of "what are you doing, if we don't see it we don't have to deal with it".

You can't do anything about something you didn't witness, and you certainly can't report what the away manager told you as that is just hearsay. So I would say report nothing, and if the league or CFA ask you about it you just report that you didn't see it, which is correct as you didn't. The only exception would be if there was an allegation of discriminatory behaviour, as you are obliged to report this whether you witness it or not.
 
I was once taught something by a level 3 referee. We were walking back in at full time when it became clear it was all kicking off in the tunnel. I made to go in there at which point he said along the lines of "what are you doing, if we don't see it we don't have to deal with it".

You can't do anything about something you didn't witness, and you certainly can't report what the away manager told you as that is just hearsay. So I would say report nothing, and if the league or CFA ask you about it you just report that you didn't see it, which is correct as you didn't. The only exception would be if there was an allegation of discriminatory behaviour, as you are obliged to report this whether you witness it or not.
Should you not just report something along the lines of you saw nothing but allegations were made by ___________ against ___________. Just to cover your back? Then the CFA/League isn't going to think 'hold on, there was a big fight at this game and the referee hasn't told us anything'.
 
I had it once, prob ten mins after game when everybody was down tunnel

Turns out one team went to the other dressing room to, erm, celebrate/goad their victory, ended up in mass brawl, dressing room smashed up

Me? I was in shower, never heard a thing......


Whats that phrase? Control the controllables.
 
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I had one team chase another team to a mini bus, I was changed, strangely I just didn't want to get involved, I saw Nothing!!!
 
I was once taught something by a level 3 referee. We were walking back in at full time when it became clear it was all kicking off in the tunnel. I made to go in there at which point he said along the lines of "what are you doing, if we don't see it we don't have to deal with it".
I appreciate that's fairly reasonable when you're working at the standard a L3 would be working at, but I don't know if I could have got away with that here. I was changing my boots on a bench as I didn't have a room to shut myself away in, and was called over specifically by a spectator and a non-involved player. As I said, I walked over rather than ran and then once it all calmed down, listened to the manager's complaints, but I honestly don't think I could have done much less!
Should you not just report something along the lines of you saw nothing but allegations were made by ___________ against ___________. Just to cover your back? Then the CFA/League isn't going to think 'hold on, there was a big fight at this game and the referee hasn't told us anything'.
This is exactly why I thought I maybe should put something in. If the manager really does bring it up at a league meeting and if there really is a video sent into county (which I may even be in the corner of), aren't I putting myself in a difficult situation by at least not reporting that I saw the end of a scuffle and that allegations of violence and threatening behavior were made to me? I'm not suggesting for a second that I pretend I saw anything I didn't, but I can say honestly that it was clear there was some kind of post-match dispute and leave it at that.
 
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You were the get away driver!

I'd sent 2 off from the departing team and a pocket full of yellows throughout, It was a Sunday pub team versus a Somalian Team.... It wasn't a walk in the park!!!:poop: I'd asked one outfield lad to remove full jogging bottoms from his mach day attire to which he told me it was against his religion to show his legs... I said that was fine but today he was at my church and he'd have one chance of taking part and my rules trump yours!!
 
get to your room, shut your door and leave them to it
You can't do anything about something you didn't witness
I think it might have been @JH (forgive me if i'm wrong) who said a few weeks back, 'this site gives referees the opportunity to take learning short-cuts'. If players want to throttle each other, a referee's presence will likely be ineffectual, so why be a hero when there's nothing but grief to come of it?
Short-cut gratefully accepted despite having never experienced this predicament!
 
Am out there to give free kicks, cautions, reds when required, make sure play is as fair as it can be, I will do what I can to keep tempers at bay, I will try stick to procedure re subs, cautions etc, I will record the goals scored, and I will turn in a n honest if not error free of officiating

If after all that folk want to box each other, crack on, I have done my bit. You want more than that then pay for a bouncer to escort you to the room safely cos thats not in my remit.
 
I think it might have been @JH (forgive me if i'm wrong) who said a few weeks back, 'this site gives referees the opportunity to take learning short-cuts'. If players want to throttle each other, a referee's presence will likely be ineffectual, so why be a hero when there's nothing but grief to come of it?
Short-cut gratefully accepted despite having never experienced this predicament!
You're wrong;)
 
It's a sticky situation. In my opinion the onus is on the away team to make their complaint and the CFA to take it from there. It maybe worth ringing up either your CFA's disciplinary department or your RDO asking for advice. As was mentioned above you can't report what you didn't see but the relevant people will know what they want and quite happily give you the advice and course of action needed
 
It's a sticky situation. In my opinion the onus is on the away team to make their complaint and the CFA to take it from there. It maybe worth ringing up either your CFA's disciplinary department or your RDO asking for advice. As was mentioned above you can't report what you didn't see but the relevant people will know what they want and quite happily give you the advice and course of action needed



Respectfully disagree
Your not the bouncer, policeman, security, whatever
Your there to apply your knowledge of the lotg to the best of your ability
The best advice to a referee, and one which is filtered to the highest level, is, least seen, least said later
Its out your remit so dont get bogged down in it

Start down the road of, he did this, he did that, and questions are asked as to why YOU did not take the appropriate action

Its not a road you want or need to go down
 
Respectfully disagree
Your not the bouncer, policeman, security, whatever
Your there to apply your knowledge of the lotg to the best of your ability
The best advice to a referee, and one which is filtered to the highest level, is, least seen, least said later
Its out your remit so dont get bogged down in it
All I'm saying is make a phone call for clarification. As I said can't report what you didn't see but the supposed possibility of a video makes it a tad awkward. By making that phone call your covering your arse
 
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All I'm saying is make a phone call for clarification. As I said can't report what you didn't see but the supposed possibility of a video makes it a tad awkward. By making that phone call your covering your arse


Or using. "Am led to believe something happened however I was not party to it" does the same and prevents further questions coming your way
 
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All I'm saying is make a phone call for clarification. As I said can't report what you didn't see but the supposed possibility of a video makes it a tad awkward. By making that phone call your covering your arse


For me, you make that call and you are opening yourself up like a can of sardines
Wait till asked, dont lie, say, its clear something happened but i dont know what...and thats you in the good books with the man above and the league
 
this afternoon I was stood pitch side waiting for a game to finish before mine started.
Once the ref blew full time all sorts of pushing and shoving and handbags started.

I felt for the young lad as it was a good game and he looked a little lost in there.

Once full time has been blown does the ref have authority to caution/send off? I was thinking to myself about what I’d have done and I wasn’t sure if cards could be issued.
He didn’t issue any, but there were 3/4 players who would have been yellowed if it had been in the match.
 
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