Buzzer Flags
- Thread starter Rob123
- Start date
Nice to have a set, but if you won't be giving them out regularly to NARs then I'd save your £300 and treat yourself to lovely new socks instead. Going 5-4 presumably you go out on the line to get enough experience using them, so when you get that 4, reassess then
If you can afford them, go for it. Very much a luxury at that level mind and not having them helps prevent you getting into bad habits, esp if buzzers were to fail mid game (for example regularly looking at AR).
Also definitely not required as a 4 and I've come across a handful of 3s without them too!
Also definitely not required as a 4 and I've come across a handful of 3s without them too!
No. I see so many referees that are damaged by buzzer flags, they never look at their ARs and therefore when the tech fails, which it will, they are hopeless. If you are going to use them I'd suggest doing some games without, and also telling ARs to only buzz if you have missed them. I used to do 1 in every 4 games without them to make sure I didn't become reliant.
Thanks for the advice. 100% won't use them every game as dont want to fall into any bad habits.
First year at level 4 last year and it never occured to me to get buzzers. It's alot of money for very little benefit at that level and more importantly, I like to keep everything very simple and I've simply seen too any other 4s messing around and stressing with buzzers pre match which effects their preparation.
You're not going to miss any offsides at that level as there's a crowd and an AR shouting at you when the flag is up. Yes it's nice to be quicker with the buzzers but it's such a marginal gain for the cost. Same with penalty decisions, encroachment etc.
If I had gone up to 3 then I'd have considered buying them but not at 4.
You're not going to miss any offsides at that level as there's a crowd and an AR shouting at you when the flag is up. Yes it's nice to be quicker with the buzzers but it's such a marginal gain for the cost. Same with penalty decisions, encroachment etc.
If I had gone up to 3 then I'd have considered buying them but not at 4.
Completely agree with that approach. You also need to think about the number of games at L4, you'll predominantly be doing lines, whereas at L3 that switches round and you'll generally do more middles than lines. For that reason buzzers are more valuable at L3.
Not sure how others got on in the South West (Hellenic League for me) but I was averaging 3 middles for every line I did minimum? I'd get a couple of Southern League lines a month and the occasional academy or Cup line but far more regular middles.
Even still (assuming that's just regional variation), I stayed away from any technology. I'm not a technophobe at all, I'm just not good enough to lose my focus on other things.
Ironically I'm now officiating on a channel island where technology (all technology) is far more widely used than I saw in the UK even though its at a lower level.
I've been out of the system for a while, but where I am it was generally three lines for every middle at L4. That might be a London thing though, there are obviously so many clubs you could be sent to on the line, large percentages of both the Isthmian and Southern Leagues, and a few in the Eastern Counties as well. Guessing you don't have anywhere near that number of clubs within a "reasonable" distance?
Correct. Being based just East of Bristol there's only really the Southern League at step 4 to line on and with the Bristol clubs being lower grade academies (so middles) we only line at Swansea & Cardiff in the u18 development league.
I now live on Guernsey so there's only amateur football on offer other than Guernsey FC who are Isthmian and Islanders aren't allowed to officiate them (I'm the only 4 on the island anyway). The only exception I believe is if there's been an issue with an officials flight/boat but not the players and therefore an Islander can step in at the last minute (this has happened before).