Cardiff Ref Strike
- Thread starter OldNavyRef
- Start date
Runner Ref
Well-Known Member
Each to their own, but this is a very strange mindset you have.
How exactly can the CFA come down hard on them? If they ban them, then there’s less referees to covers games and so on……..
This happened a few years back when the young lad arranged the strikes (can’t remember his name). Can’t say it made much difference, but this is sadly the situation we find ourselves in.
Kes
I'll Decide ...
I don't think that's true.
We've debated the nature of the general attitude of the footballing public (not just players) towards referees on here before and I still say the problem is a cultural one to do with football globally as a whole.
Runner Ref
Well-Known Member
Kes
I'll Decide ...
That's an entirely different thread and not really much to do with football refereeing but I'd not disagree with that claim in the slightest.
The problem we have with football is that the abusive, disrespectful "culture" is generally accepted and has been for decades now, hence the reason I describe it as footballing "culture". It's "tribal" by it's very nature and so brings with it the negatives as well as the positives.
Each to their own I guess. I fundamentally disagree with your view - collective withdrawal of labour is one of the few powers that any group of workers/volunteers have - but if we all agreed on everything it would be boring, as long as we disagree respectfully.
The only punishment here is that teams will have to source volunteer refs. The FA, many CFAs and Competition Organisers can wring their hands and talk the talk as much as they want, but until the punishments to players AND clubs is meaningful enough, this will be a perpetual cycle.
I understand that view - I reckon I'm close to 150 games in and would have had two, maybe three, such games - though depending on the direct cause(s) of the call to "strike" I'd be keen to support it.
Yes and no imho. It's a much bigger cultural problem, both across football and wider society, but I would agree that at the level I referee at (Dog and Duck Sunday League, decent but not academy standard youth football) the transgressors/problem players and coaches are in a significant minority.
I agree, and it's why I stopped following a lot of "refereee Twitter".
Also if we are calling this overreaction a strike CFA should enforce the mandatory 2 weeks notice
It's not a strike - the local RA isn't a Trade Union and the referees aren't employees. It's a collective, voluntary withdrawal of services.
There's different levels of bad behaviour. I know I don't need to tell you that obvious fact!
I'm not too interested in routine misconduct. Toys out the pram, blame the ref, outbursts of discourse in the face of the disappointment of losing etc...
It's the vile nature from the much smaller minority that really does the damage. That's what you and I would be referring to in our 1, 2 or 3% of games. Get rid of these disgusting individuals and the routine misconduct improves because the regular 'bad lad' won't feed off anyone setting a nastier tone. I'm sure we've both had games which are going south, then we send off one, maybe two individuals and suddenly the game is 'normal'
Last Sunday for example, I Sin Binned a 'Walking Sin Bin'. He's worse than that though. I've encountered him a number of times and there's something not right with him. He has a history of assaulting a match official and a string of endless bans for other concerning stuff. Yet, he's still playing
HE is the problem. HE is the one who needs dealing with. HE should not be playing football. 'HE' refers to all such HE's
So if the strike was targeting the FA for inaction regarding all such HE's, I'd support it
But a strike without clear objectives/demands is just like the endless list of strikes which have achieved nothing and are pointless
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Then CFA should threaten sanction if anyone previously appointed make a statement
Runner Ref
Well-Known Member
How exactly do the CFA sanction a large group of referees? Then there’s no referees to referee.
On top of this, you can’t force someone to referee. We’re volunteers. If we don’t want to referee, we don’t have to.
if appointed and no show on strike day disciplinary hearing same as if you fail to appear any other week anyone supporting this farcical strike has no logical argument and if you gave a clear indication of sanctions many would act more sensible
Runner Ref
Well-Known Member
Again, you simply come off the game. As stated, referees are volunteers- no one can force them to be there.
Sanction them all. Then you have no referees to officiate games for a longer period.
Referees have an element of power in that there are shortages. CFA’s cannot simply go out and replace the referees.
Now you are being ridiculous. Referees are not employees, they are not required to go out and referee on any given weekend, they choose to offer their services. If they choose not to do so, collectively or on their own, it isn't a strike as such, it is rather people choosing not to volunteer. If you were comparing it to actual employment it would be like companies being short staffed because employees didn't volunteer to work extra hours as overtime. At a company I worked at until a few years ago we were all working very long hours, and we weren't entitled to overtime, until a horror of a new CITO came in and started shouting at us and being abusive. So we all got together and agreed we would all start at 9 and finish at 5, and take the full hour for lunch, no union was involved, was entirely our choice that we decided to only work our contracted hours.
Actually I would say due to there wording CFA has a great case to enforce.
How? How can a CFA force volunteers to step onto a football pitch? Simple answer, they can't.
There is nothing to stop them closing their dates or telling the appointments officer but sorry I am no longer available. Nothing at all. If they accept the appointment and don't turn up then yes there is a case to answer but outside of that Im not sure what they could do
Up here if you pull out under 72 hours notice from county appointment you expect to assist in sourcing replacements so strike wouldn’t work
Runner Ref
Well-Known Member
Again, you’re a volunteer . No one can force you to referee and no one can force you to find a replacement referee.
If you don’t turn up, you don’t turn up. Can the County punish you in some way? Sure. Are they going to punish a large group of referees? Not a chance, they can’t afford to.