In a league deciding fixture, being a referee myself I watched a fixture between a friend’s team and the opposing team. During the fixture as a spectator there was no sense of impartiality. Regarding the match events is irrelevant but as this went on, I looked to find who the referee was and it was indeed the chairman of the opposing team. I know they operate the same as i team I coach regarding referee pools (albeit were in a different division). There was no transparency before the fixture regarding the referee affiliation and many refs in my pool also coincide with there pool. There was many referees available from their pool but they weren’t even contacted. I understand we always have match officials who may have an affiliation to a club, but with it being a league deciding fixture, should it not be declared before the fixture has begun. My friend isn’t a referee and wanted to seek clarity from my fellow professionals.
Chairman reffing in league decide fixture.
- Thread starter joedicarlo7
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As a starter, please don't make the same post in two different sections. I've deleted the other one, but it causes confusion as some people will reply to one post and others to the other one.
In terms of the question, it isn't really a question for referees to answer, more for league committees and CFAs. If the competition knew about it then it is down to them, certainly bad practice and their member clubs should be holding them to account. If the referee didn't declare his affiliation to the club he was appointed to then it could be a breach of the regulation for the control and registration of referees and he could be charged and potentially suspended
In terms of the question, it isn't really a question for referees to answer, more for league committees and CFAs. If the competition knew about it then it is down to them, certainly bad practice and their member clubs should be holding them to account. If the referee didn't declare his affiliation to the club he was appointed to then it could be a breach of the regulation for the control and registration of referees and he could be charged and potentially suspended
it was U14s, club appointed referees. Both clubs operate and have separate ref pools but none of the refs were approached in the opposing teams pool.
Herein lies the problem.
Apologies I wasn’t sure watch section fit the concern.
It was a club appointed referee so the league was unaware. The referee didn’t declare his affiliation and my friend/the coach only become aware due to me spectating and seeing serious concerns around the decisioning. Due to the breach would that affect the result if raised, never ever witnessed anything like it was I know from reffing myself it’s always best to be transparent before, especially in such a big fixture.
It was a club appointed referee so the league was unaware. The referee didn’t declare his affiliation and my friend/the coach only become aware due to me spectating and seeing serious concerns around the decisioning. Due to the breach would that affect the result if raised, never ever witnessed anything like it was I know from reffing myself it’s always best to be transparent before, especially in such a big fixture.
Definitely agree but the referee failed to declare a relevant affiliation. I wasn’t sure if this results in the team and referee being sanctioned. I.e. the match being replayed/or the team in the know losing the points and possible suspension for the referee.
Ultimately the team should’ve declared this aswell as the referee prior to the fixture which nobody had done.
As a vice - chairman of a club, I used to referee my team’s fixtures - albeit - development football, simply because there was such a shortage of referees that finding anyone to do it was a godsend. Not saying that this applies in this case - however - we have to remember we are talking about youth football here.
In my opinion - people (children especially) just need to be taught that unfortunately this is life and this is sport and, again, in my opinion, that is the message that the coach, parents and other adults should be giving.
As a player I have been on the receiving end of this myself where an appointment of a referee to a league decider was, to us, completely unfair. What did the league do when we complained prior to the fixture? They spoke to the referee (the dad of the opposition teams striker) and assured us that he had said that he was going to be impartial!
This happens a lot in school football. County cup semi final - refereed by a teacher from an opposition school - gives a penalty to make it 5-4 and team go through. Was it a penalty, who cares? That’s football you have to get on with it.
In my opinion - people (children especially) just need to be taught that unfortunately this is life and this is sport and, again, in my opinion, that is the message that the coach, parents and other adults should be giving.
As a player I have been on the receiving end of this myself where an appointment of a referee to a league decider was, to us, completely unfair. What did the league do when we complained prior to the fixture? They spoke to the referee (the dad of the opposition teams striker) and assured us that he had said that he was going to be impartial!
This happens a lot in school football. County cup semi final - refereed by a teacher from an opposition school - gives a penalty to make it 5-4 and team go through. Was it a penalty, who cares? That’s football you have to get on with it.
I think as it was a league deciding fixture and they chose a chairman of a club when they normally use the pool of refs is a concern. My club uses the same pool of refs and many were available for the fixture. Essentially there could’ve been anyone they could’ve picked from the pool due to lack of fixtures.
I totally agree about children need to be taught these things happen in life and sport but ultimately from situations you’ve told me prior, you was aware of the referee being affiliated with a club or school. My friend/the coach was never aware of an affiliation and was only made aware due to be spectating and ultimately feeling something was off which heightened my concerns.
Ultimately the lack of transparency is a serious concern, not advising who’s reffing the fixture and the affiliation. Kids being made aware of such before the second half begun is also teaching kids bad intangibles.
I totally agree about children need to be taught these things happen in life and sport but ultimately from situations you’ve told me prior, you was aware of the referee being affiliated with a club or school. My friend/the coach was never aware of an affiliation and was only made aware due to be spectating and ultimately feeling something was off which heightened my concerns.
Ultimately the lack of transparency is a serious concern, not advising who’s reffing the fixture and the affiliation. Kids being made aware of such before the second half begun is also teaching kids bad intangibles.
Completely agree this seems very bad practice to me and entirely avoidable from what you have described.
Definitely. I was speculating but merely on the lack of transparency alone. Would that suffice a replay of the fixture? It’s not just the referee who reffed the game, the coach of the opposition team could have also declared such.
As Rusty said, this would be something for the league to decide/ sort out. I am unsure as I have never been on a league committee. I would imagine you would have to prove, in law, that the referee made decisions that effected the outcome of the game, that is going to be very difficult unless there is video footage.
It isn’t myself it’s for my friend/the coach but as a spectator it was something I’ve not witnessed prior.
If this is in England there is realistically no chance of the game being replayed, at least not unless it can be proven with video evidence that decisions were taken that were less than impartial.
This can be an issue of club appointed referees, the answer is for your league to appoint a referee appointments office to use those referee pools that you refer to as a panel to appoint centrally from. If clubs are allowed to appoint their own referees then it stands to reason that non-impartiality is a risk.
My son (13yo) plays in a local league that doesn’t appoint referees. I referee the vast majority of their home games and always declare in advance to the oppo I’m a parent. Only ever been accused of being biased once, ironically by a team who should have had a player sent off and scored two deep into added time (my son taking an age to get the ball every time it went out of play… 
), and when we played them away in the league decider one of their coaches reffed and made some, let’s say baffling, decisions!
For leagues that don’t allocate, it’s an issue you simply have to accept but it’s very rare it’s a significant problem.
), and when we played them away in the league decider one of their coaches reffed and made some, let’s say baffling, decisions!For leagues that don’t allocate, it’s an issue you simply have to accept but it’s very rare it’s a significant problem.
It can happen though as I was appointed to a game replayed last season as a team had failed to disclose it was a relative of the manager who had picked up the game but I think it may of been a leauge rule that it had to be disclosed side note one of the hardest games I’ve ever reffed as both sides felt aggrieved.
Yeah I thought that’s the main issue, the transparency and declaring beforehand. The decision making can always be deciphered in certain ways but different individuals.
The fact they use a reffing pool similar to my club but hadn’t sounded out any of the non club associated refs is strange. Not declaring before the fixture a chairman reffing is also very strange, especially in a league decider. I’ve always declared when reffing. My friend would’ve never known if I didn’t google the club as a spectator during the fixture.
The fact they use a reffing pool similar to my club but hadn’t sounded out any of the non club associated refs is strange. Not declaring before the fixture a chairman reffing is also very strange, especially in a league decider. I’ve always declared when reffing. My friend would’ve never known if I didn’t google the club as a spectator during the fixture.
This is exactly what I thought, it’s not the base of the bias as that can always be subjective, but not declaring before a league deciding fixture and then the coach finding out at the start of the second half was obviously a bad one.