A message for the Step 2 - 6 observers:
Observing colleagues,
Ahead of the big kick off I thought I would provide you all with a short overview of the areas of technical focus in time for the new season. The below should come as no surprise to any of you as we ask you to focus your minds ready for the new season and for us to keep pace with the growth and evolve of the modern-day game that our officials work within. We are also in the process of sharing the below with the clubs, leagues and competitions from Step 2 – 6 to ensure that everybody is aware.
________________________________________________________________
Laws of the Game amendments
Whilst largely minor, small and cosmetic in detail please make sure that you have taken the time to read, digest and fully understand the IFAB law amendments for the season. These have been delivered (and are being delivered) to all referees at Step 2 – 6, Step 2 Observers, FA CORE referees. The link can be found here. https://www.theifab.com/law-changes/latest/
Physical threshold on foul challenges
Player safety will always remain our number one priority. Whilst there can be occasions where our actions as referees prevents misconduct sometimes, we acknowledge that this is not always possible. We therefore must strive to ensure that our decision-making accuracy and appropriate issue of sanction to be of a really high standard.
During the 2022/23 season we saw examples of where our sanctions were sometimes too severe and equally some occasions where our disciplinary sanction was not accurate and severe enough. To aid and assist your learning, understanding and provide clarity of view we are sharing a number of foul challenge and expected outcome clips via the FA Refereeing community.
Time delay and time consumption tactics
From the top of the game downwards there is a real drive and focus on the address of players who commit clear and deliberate tactics to consume/waste time. Football stakeholders are aligned in their views in wanting referees to take strong actions against players where we deduce their actions are clear, deliberate and impactful on delaying the restart of the game and wasting time for tactical advantage. Clips and expected outcomes will be loaded onto the FA Community to aid and develop understanding.
Participant behaviour
We are at a point in time in the game where everybody is aligned with their view that it is no longer acceptable to accept the unacceptable. For far too long we have normalised the poor behaviour towards match officials from some of the game's participants. Whilst there is still a strong need for pro-active communication and preventative management, there is need for match officials to be stronger generally in their address of players and coaches who are confronting them in an angry, aggressive and confrontational manner.
Players and coaches who make a conscious choice to run at match officials at speed to question, challenge and be critical of decisions and or performance should be dealt with accordingly. Clips and expected outcomes will be loaded onto The FA Community to aid and develop understanding.
Stricter calculation of added time
You will perhaps be aware that there is a strong push from the top level of the game for match officials to take a more accurate and stricter calculation of added time. Whilst at step 2 – 6 we are perhaps not anticipating a total replication of what we will see in the Premier league/Women’s super league and international competition we must work hard to be aligned with the ethos and principle that guess work from officials on the time needed to be added needs to stop. Where possible please be more accurate with the time added on at this level of the game.
With pro-active player management and the address of time consumption tactics the need to add additional time should naturally reduce but we do anticipate a slight increase at least for a short-term period whilst players and coaches adjust their behaviour. We will continue to monitor this through the review of observation/club reports, matchday coaching and development visits from our professional workforce.
Caution and send off procedure
The old process of taking each caution/send-off procedure as an opportunity to slow the game unnecessarily is obsolete, outdated, unhelpful and no longer recommended. The Laws of the Game provide no prescriptive way of which a referee should follow when cautioning and sending off players and we therefore remind everybody to be aware that the emphasis should be on identification (be clear who is being cautioned), the disciplinary sanction being issued, and the relevant and accurate note being taken. Other than in the exceptional need of where a referee may need to calm the temperate of the game down – the routine procedure of cautioning and send off of any player should take a matter of seconds. This does not compromise the administration of denoting name/number etc which is still required to be completed before the game is restarted.
The issue of quick and efficient sanction to a player with minimal communication is often more powerful, sends a stronger message to other participants as well as defusing the incident and potentially guarding against the escalation of the situation and further misconduct developing.
Further clarification regarding observer expectations regarding the management of the cautioning procedure is being shared on The FA Observer Community and within the appendix of the Steps 3-6 Match Observer Report Writing Manual.
_____________________________________________________________________
Observing colleagues,
Ahead of the big kick off I thought I would provide you all with a short overview of the areas of technical focus in time for the new season. The below should come as no surprise to any of you as we ask you to focus your minds ready for the new season and for us to keep pace with the growth and evolve of the modern-day game that our officials work within. We are also in the process of sharing the below with the clubs, leagues and competitions from Step 2 – 6 to ensure that everybody is aware.
________________________________________________________________
Laws of the Game amendments
Whilst largely minor, small and cosmetic in detail please make sure that you have taken the time to read, digest and fully understand the IFAB law amendments for the season. These have been delivered (and are being delivered) to all referees at Step 2 – 6, Step 2 Observers, FA CORE referees. The link can be found here. https://www.theifab.com/law-changes/latest/
Physical threshold on foul challenges
Player safety will always remain our number one priority. Whilst there can be occasions where our actions as referees prevents misconduct sometimes, we acknowledge that this is not always possible. We therefore must strive to ensure that our decision-making accuracy and appropriate issue of sanction to be of a really high standard.
During the 2022/23 season we saw examples of where our sanctions were sometimes too severe and equally some occasions where our disciplinary sanction was not accurate and severe enough. To aid and assist your learning, understanding and provide clarity of view we are sharing a number of foul challenge and expected outcome clips via the FA Refereeing community.
Time delay and time consumption tactics
From the top of the game downwards there is a real drive and focus on the address of players who commit clear and deliberate tactics to consume/waste time. Football stakeholders are aligned in their views in wanting referees to take strong actions against players where we deduce their actions are clear, deliberate and impactful on delaying the restart of the game and wasting time for tactical advantage. Clips and expected outcomes will be loaded onto the FA Community to aid and develop understanding.
Participant behaviour
We are at a point in time in the game where everybody is aligned with their view that it is no longer acceptable to accept the unacceptable. For far too long we have normalised the poor behaviour towards match officials from some of the game's participants. Whilst there is still a strong need for pro-active communication and preventative management, there is need for match officials to be stronger generally in their address of players and coaches who are confronting them in an angry, aggressive and confrontational manner.
Players and coaches who make a conscious choice to run at match officials at speed to question, challenge and be critical of decisions and or performance should be dealt with accordingly. Clips and expected outcomes will be loaded onto The FA Community to aid and develop understanding.
Stricter calculation of added time
You will perhaps be aware that there is a strong push from the top level of the game for match officials to take a more accurate and stricter calculation of added time. Whilst at step 2 – 6 we are perhaps not anticipating a total replication of what we will see in the Premier league/Women’s super league and international competition we must work hard to be aligned with the ethos and principle that guess work from officials on the time needed to be added needs to stop. Where possible please be more accurate with the time added on at this level of the game.
With pro-active player management and the address of time consumption tactics the need to add additional time should naturally reduce but we do anticipate a slight increase at least for a short-term period whilst players and coaches adjust their behaviour. We will continue to monitor this through the review of observation/club reports, matchday coaching and development visits from our professional workforce.
Caution and send off procedure
The old process of taking each caution/send-off procedure as an opportunity to slow the game unnecessarily is obsolete, outdated, unhelpful and no longer recommended. The Laws of the Game provide no prescriptive way of which a referee should follow when cautioning and sending off players and we therefore remind everybody to be aware that the emphasis should be on identification (be clear who is being cautioned), the disciplinary sanction being issued, and the relevant and accurate note being taken. Other than in the exceptional need of where a referee may need to calm the temperate of the game down – the routine procedure of cautioning and send off of any player should take a matter of seconds. This does not compromise the administration of denoting name/number etc which is still required to be completed before the game is restarted.
The issue of quick and efficient sanction to a player with minimal communication is often more powerful, sends a stronger message to other participants as well as defusing the incident and potentially guarding against the escalation of the situation and further misconduct developing.
Further clarification regarding observer expectations regarding the management of the cautioning procedure is being shared on The FA Observer Community and within the appendix of the Steps 3-6 Match Observer Report Writing Manual.
_____________________________________________________________________
