A&H

First game incharge

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Don't sweat it, even the best of us get those games where all we can do is "chase" the ball. Just try to position yourself correctly for any restarts let the rest develop later.
 
The Referee Store
Basically by the time the game finished my notebook looked like a two year old had scribbled on it for 90mins.

As I had never ref’d before I didn’t know how much info I had to document during the game, I didn’t know what I would have to supply to the league after the game such as time of goals & time of subs etc, also the biggest pain was keep getting it out of a Velcro top pocket then get the pencil out and cram everything onto one little page, as the game had 7 goals & 6 subs I was forever getting the book out of my top pocket.

Anyway now I know that I only need to supply the score to the league and that subs is not needed plus yellows etc goes to the FA, I’ve got an easier small flip pad that I will have more space on & will have it set out how i want it rather than the old note book, plus I’m gonna keep it in my shorts pocket so it’s easier to use, red is going in back pocket & yellow top right.

All little things you tailor as you go along I guess. But last week I spent half the game in & out of my top pocket writing match info down, I’m not doing that again.
you might do better with the preprinted record of the game cards which come with a book and red/yellow cards, they are divided in to seperate sections for teams, goals, cards and subs
 
you might do better with the preprinted record of the game cards which come with a book and red/yellow cards, they are divided in to seperate sections for teams, goals, cards and subs

True but the book I’ve got is tiny and no room in it whatsoever but then again I guess I was trying to write a lot in it & was running on pure adrenaline considering from the moment i turned up at the game I had little clue as to what I was meant to do.

Like I said I guess you work out what’s best for u as you go along.
 
True but the book I’ve got is tiny and no room in it whatsoever but then again I guess I was trying to write a lot in it & was running on pure adrenaline considering from the moment i turned up at the game I had little clue as to what I was meant to do.

Like I said I guess you work out what’s best for u as you go along.
If you didnt caution anybody what were u writing in it? You only need to record goals cautions send offs. And maaybe extra notes for send off if needed
 
Hi there, I am about to go through all of this as my course starts in a weeks time! Glup! But from what men in black is saying do they not teach you what to do in pre match or after the match?
 
If you didnt caution anybody what were u writing in it? You only need to record goals cautions send offs. And maaybe extra notes for send off if needed

The book is small the box’s are tiny.

Each team had five subs each so I wrote down all ten subs names and numbers so that when they came on I could make sure they were on the team, I wrote down what time they came on, I wrote down each goal (7) & team names, it ended up being a complete mess as I ran out of room.

But I now know what the league require after the game & im also not gonna be as nervous as hell acting like I’ve done it before because I now have an idea of what I’m doing.
 
Hi there, I am about to go through all of this as my course starts in a weeks time! Glup! But from what men in black is saying do they not teach you what to do in pre match or after the match?

They do to a point but each league I guess have different practise, my league didn’t communicate with me at all before my match so I pretty much had to blag it on the day.

Just make sure before u ref a game you are clear on what you need to do pre match & have it set out in your mind, I had an idea but as I’ve said above you can only tailor things as you go along with experience.

Probably not as bad as I’ve made out but as I was forgetting the lino flags then the coin then etc it’s just a lot to remember in your first game.
 
Hi there, I am about to go through all of this as my course starts in a weeks time! Glup! But from what men in black is saying do they not teach you what to do in pre match or after the match?
ask all these questions on your course, your insructors should teach you how to fill out a record of the game card, and dont forget to start your watches, almost every referee does that on a first game good luck
 
They do to a point but each league I guess have different practise, my league didn’t communicate with me at all before my match so I pretty much had to blag it on the day.

Good learning point here - all leagues will have some sort of constitution/guidelines/rule book/document outlining the league and how it works - always worth having a look beforehand just in case. Each league is different
 
is there any place online to see these league rules? or is that something that happens when you are signed up to that league?
 
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is there any place online to see these league rules? or is that something that happens when you are signed up to that league?

Full time might be a good place to start looking. Some leagues will have a set of guidelines on fulltime, otherwise trying searching for that league's website via google. Many have set up a dedicated website. Your last/first resort is the appointing officer of that league, ask for any specific guidelines, rules of the completion etc.
 
Hi mate, great thread here. Your first two paragraphs I could have wrote myself. I’m 31, played all my life and today was my last day on the referee course.

I have my first ever game tomorrow, adult men. Just going over my kit list, journey planning and league rules ect. Some really helpful things on this thread. I keep thinking I'm going to get caught out with something I don't know.

I'll send my first match report tomorrow if I survive. Wish me Luck!
 
Hi Folkes just thought I’d share my second game experience for anyone that may be interested.

It was top v bottom so I was expecting quite a one sided game & that’s exactly what I got, it finished 13-0.

So onto the game itself I now had an understanding of the pre match routine & wasn’t at all nervous, I went through the process and got the game underway, first half a breeze 6-0 to the home team & no incidents of note the odd coming together & a bit of verbal between both sides but nothing out of control, my positioning was a lot better a lot easier & felt more natural.

Second half a bit more intersting, a lot of verbal from away side regarding line decisions which I explained I’m going by what my lino’s call that’s why they are there I’m not going to over rule them every 5 mins if they have a better view than me. The manager of the away team ran the line for them & this is where it got interesting, a striker ran clean through into the box with a defender the ball bounced and deflected off the attackers hand it was ball to hand and not deliberate, I play on and he scores, the defender argued the case but I explained what I’d seen and I also explained the Lino (the defenders manager) who was 10ft away on the same side of the incident didn’t flag or batter an eye lid, anyway low and behold the manager then pipes up and says hand ball ref he then starts to rant & rave, I said not for me & said to him you didn’t flag if you saw it why didn’t you flag you was 10ft away in-line with it I’m 20ft away behind it.
Anyway play continues it’s so one sided it’s not worth playing goal after goal after goal goes in, onto the next Lino / manager episode, ball deflects off a player goes out for throw he doesn’t flag what way the throw is so I go with what I see, he then throws another rant, I say to him how can you possibly argue with my decision when your 5ft away and didn’t flag for the throw, he was going on & to my own regret I lost it with him I was raging I give it to him virbally he then spat his dummy out dropped the flag and walked off, a sub then ran the line for them & was good as gold, so that was that game nearly over and not for the first time in my two games I get stuck in two minds regarding playing advantage, player got fouled but stayed on his feet i went to blow but played on as he takes his shot I half blow whith a tame low whistle and give the free kick, i think to myself ffs why didn’t you let him take the shot and leave the whistle alone, not for the first time the players said Jesus ref blow or don’t blow, anyway game nearly over no more to report blow for full time 13-0.

So my bullet points for concern:

The manager confrontation, I totally handled it the wrong way but I did rectify it at full time, i pulled him to one side & explained very politely that you have two choices when you turn up with your team on a Sunday you can either be a manager on the sidelines rant and rave all you like or you can run the line & be an assistant but you can’t be both, I said I have 22 players to deal with if I have my Lino’s starting on me Aswell then I’ve got no chance, I said I’ll back your calls as a Lino & you should back mine, anyway shook hands and I think he got it, half his team came over to apologise after the game and said it happens week in week out with him, which I was not surprised at, but even so I shouldn’t have lost my rag.

Next issue I have is playing advantage I try to play on as much as I can if it’s a marginal foul anywhere on the pitch I try to play on, if it’s in an attacking third again I try to play on, the problem I’m finding is that every time I play on if the attacker doesn’t get the end result he wants as in a goal or a sustained attack 5 seconds after I’ve played on they are in my ear hole for the free kick, I say u can’t have it both ways you got the advantage and a good one at that, you can’t then have the free kick Aswell. It’s getting to the stage now where I’m thinking of blowing every time there is a foul just to save the arguing, it happened today in the palace game ref played advantage Townsend gets the pass away palace play on and Townsend is up in arms moaning at the ref I’m thinking Jesus do players not get it.

My other issue is players moaning at me every time they disagree with a Lino call, I’m like Jesus what u want me to do ignore Lino’s or over rule them all game, it’s so annoying all game players moaning about the Lino’s.

Anyway game a lot better than last week, didn’t once have to think what way is someone shooting when giving a free kick it came naturally also my positioning came more naturally, although far from perfect, all in all a good game to ref probably as it was so one sided.

Thanks for reading.
 
Hi mate, another good post!

I had my first game today, just posted a thread. Mostly uneventful but I did have my doubts for a few things. I had similar issue today with AR saying offside and when I gave it as they were in a better position than me, the attacking team would go crazy. I would say to the lads I have to trust my AR. At times they could have been primary school children. I cant see anyway around this until we climb the ranks and can work in teams of 3. If there is a counter attack and I'm 15 yards behind play and the AR saying the through ball is offside I have to trust them surely, even if he is the defending teams teammates?
 
Hi mate, another good post!

I had my first game today, just posted a thread. Mostly uneventful but I did have my doubts for a few things. I had similar issue today with AR saying offside and when I gave it as they were in a better position than me, the attacking team would go crazy. I would say to the lads I have to trust my AR. At times they could have been primary school children. I cant see anyway around this until we climb the ranks and can work in teams of 3. If there is a counter attack and I'm 15 yards behind play and the AR saying the through ball is offside I have to trust them surely, even if he is the defending teams teammates?

Fully agree if you don’t go with the Lino then what’s the point of them being there, problem is naturally I want to say to the players that moan if you’ve got a problem with the decision then don’t blame me blame the lino, but obviously you can’t do that.

Imo the biggest one single issue in amateur footy is the Lino situation, you have representatives of both sides doing the offsides for teams they are playing against, the whole concept is just ridiculous but what can you do, as you say until you climb the ladder and havd neutral assistants this problem will always be there.
 
Hi Folkes just thought I’d share my second game experience for anyone that may be interested.

It was top v bottom so I was expecting quite a one sided game & that’s exactly what I got, it finished 13-0.

So onto the game itself I now had an understanding of the pre match routine & wasn’t at all nervous, I went through the process and got the game underway, first half a breeze 6-0 to the home team & no incidents of note the odd coming together & a bit of verbal between both sides but nothing out of control, my positioning was a lot better a lot easier & felt more natural.

Second half a bit more intersting, a lot of verbal from away side regarding line decisions which I explained I’m going by what my lino’s call that’s why they are there I’m not going to over rule them every 5 mins if they have a better view than me. The manager of the away team ran the line for them & this is where it got interesting, a striker ran clean through into the box with a defender the ball bounced and deflected off the attackers hand it was ball to hand and not deliberate, I play on and he scores, the defender argued the case but I explained what I’d seen and I also explained the Lino (the defenders manager) who was 10ft away on the same side of the incident didn’t flag or batter an eye lid, anyway low and behold the manager then pipes up and says hand ball ref he then starts to rant & rave, I said not for me & said to him you didn’t flag if you saw it why didn’t you flag you was 10ft away in-line with it I’m 20ft away behind it.
Anyway play continues it’s so one sided it’s not worth playing goal after goal after goal goes in, onto the next Lino / manager episode, ball deflects off a player goes out for throw he doesn’t flag what way the throw is so I go with what I see, he then throws another rant, I say to him how can you possibly argue with my decision when your 5ft away and didn’t flag for the throw, he was going on & to my own regret I lost it with him I was raging I give it to him virbally he then spat his dummy out dropped the flag and walked off, a sub then ran the line for them & was good as gold, so that was that game nearly over and not for the first time in my two games I get stuck in two minds regarding playing advantage, player got fouled but stayed on his feet i went to blow but played on as he takes his shot I half blow whith a tame low whistle and give the free kick, i think to myself ffs why didn’t you let him take the shot and leave the whistle alone, not for the first time the players said Jesus ref blow or don’t blow, anyway game nearly over no more to report blow for full time 13-0.

So my bullet points for concern:

The manager confrontation, I totally handled it the wrong way but I did rectify it at full time, i pulled him to one side & explained very politely that you have two choices when you turn up with your team on a Sunday you can either be a manager on the sidelines rant and rave all you like or you can run the line & be an assistant but you can’t be both, I said I have 22 players to deal with if I have my Lino’s starting on me Aswell then I’ve got no chance, I said I’ll back your calls as a Lino & you should back mine, anyway shook hands and I think he got it, half his team came over to apologise after the game and said it happens week in week out with him, which I was not surprised at, but even so I shouldn’t have lost my rag.

Next issue I have is playing advantage I try to play on as much as I can if it’s a marginal foul anywhere on the pitch I try to play on, if it’s in an attacking third again I try to play on, the problem I’m finding is that every time I play on if the attacker doesn’t get the end result he wants as in a goal or a sustained attack 5 seconds after I’ve played on they are in my ear hole for the free kick, I say u can’t have it both ways you got the advantage and a good one at that, you can’t then have the free kick Aswell. It’s getting to the stage now where I’m thinking of blowing every time there is a foul just to save the arguing, it happened today in the palace game ref played advantage Townsend gets the pass away palace play on and Townsend is up in arms moaning at the ref I’m thinking Jesus do players not get it.

My other issue is players moaning at me every time they disagree with a Lino call, I’m like Jesus what u want me to do ignore Lino’s or over rule them all game, it’s so annoying all game players moaning about the Lino’s.

Anyway game a lot better than last week, didn’t once have to think what way is someone shooting when giving a free kick it came naturally also my positioning came more naturally, although far from perfect, all in all a good game to ref probably as it was so one sided.

Thanks for reading.
Letting small contact go so that a player can carry on is different from playing advantage. Try to separate the two things. If there's a little tap, minuscule foul and the player obviously wants to carry on, tell them: "keep going" "carry on". Save the advantage shout - loud long shout - and arms - big arms - for proper free kick-worthy advantage moments. 1-2-3 brilliantly clear advantages in a game seems to be optimum. As you obviously know - for clear breakaways, good possession in the last third etc.

But hey. It's game 2. You are already about 2 years ahead of where I was!
 
Letting small contact go so that a player can carry on is different from playing advantage. Try to separate the two things. If there's a little tap, minuscule foul and the player obviously wants to carry on, tell them: "keep going" "carry on". Save the advantage shout - loud long shout - and arms - big arms - for proper free kick-worthy advantage moments. 1-2-3 brilliantly clear advantages in a game seems to be optimum. As you obviously know - for clear breakaways, good possession in the last third etc.

But hey. It's game 2. You are already about 2 years ahead of where I was!

I seem to be getting fouls on edge of the box that the ball ends up with the fouled players team mate who then shoots a split second after the foul, the ball goes wide etc & they then want the free kick this is the grey area I’m getting myself into, is that advantage or not.

As for anywhere else on the pitch I’ve got that under control and it works but as for edge of the area it’s becoming an issue, I’m thinking of just blowing for any foul around the box regardless of who the ball falls to.

Quick question if a player makes a lunge at a ball but mrs the man & ball is that a free kick, i had it today player two foot lunge misses everything in sight and the opposing team want a free kick. I say no because he hasn’t made contact
 
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