So we are now using a card count to determine how well we are doing?
In that case I must be bottom of the list - not had a red for over a season, and majority of games it's one or two YC and hardly ever for dissent. I tell the guys in my pre-match that I'm not a thief, but I also don't like being shouted at.
First one I get, pull him over with captain and give him the public bo!!ocking and in general, that's sorted the game out. Odd one or two from there will go on and go in the book, but they have no room for complaint as the line has been drawn so only got themselves to blame (and normally the rest of the team on their case too).
Cards do not manage the game. They will generally not diffuse a situation, they will, in most cases escalate it. Especially if the receipient feels that they are on the receiving end of an injustice.
If you are using a lot of cards it's because you are being REactive to what you have let it get to, as opposed to PROactive to avoid getting to the situation in the first place.
If you have ever done any form of Root Cause Analysis you are asked to ask the 5 Whys?
Why are you getting card card out? Because they are showing you dissent by word or action
Why are they showing you dissent? Because they are so upset or angered by the injustice they have received, that they cant keep a lid on it any longer.
Why? Because you have been inconsistant / missed something your should have seen / they are wanting to pull one over you and intimidate you.
Why?
Why = the main route cause / reason for being in the situation you are in, who ever or what ever is the reason. It can be an eye opener behaving like a 5 year old and asking why, but it gets to the source.
I kind of see SM's point that this a bit simplistic - sure there are some circumstances where the 4th why gets a different answer and then the 5th (or 6th) gives you a different root cause, but in general this is the best post on the thread by a distance.
If we want to improve as referees we have to be prepared to be VERY self-critical, and the reality is that on many occasions things that we have done will have contributed to, or even fully caused, a player's dissent. Once we take a look at that and address the areas where we can improve then two things happen: (1) we get less dissent in each game (2) the players who do dissent are entirely responsible for their YC.
Four or five years ago I was just promoted to level 6 but I wasn't enjoying games. Almost every game was a battle; they were a battle with 22 players, with 4 or 5 coaches, with club assistants, with subs, with spectators and I was walking away with everyone thoroughly hacked off, 5 cautions for C2, 1 caution for C1, a coach misconduct report for having a go at me and an offinabus for having a go at me. Law 5 says that I am The Ref and that I can do this, indeed Law 5 says that I am always right, even when I'm wrong, but the reality is that I wasn't right, and that in order to get out of this situation I had to take a long hard look at myself first of all before just blaming the players and brushing everything else under the carpet.
A couple of years and lots of helpful guidance later I'm often walking away from a game with only C1s and C4s in the book and players telling me I got some decisions wrong, but I had a good game. What's changed? Two things:
1) I thought about what I could be doing that might be getting in the way of me making good decisions and realised that while I was fit enough I wasn't working hard enough at getting into good positions, close enough to play and with a good angle to make a credible decision. Working to make sure that I stay close to play from minute 1 to minute 90 and that I'm always taking the best ANGLE has improved my decision making
2) I realised that actually the players had no idea what I was thinking. I wasn't talking to them, I wasn't letting them know what I was thinking until the whistle went, or even until the cards came out - they were surprised by most decisions and that frustrated them. When some decisions were less than consistent that was too much for them to cope with and the dissent came out. By talking to players throughout the game - "Don't foul", "stay on your feet", "Let him go", "eyes on the ball when it comes down" - they know where the bar is set. They often disagree and they don't like it, but they're not surprised when I do give the foul and there's little or no dissent as a result. Using the stepped approach helps as well - a whispered word as I go past someone, bringing them over for a chat, telling the skipper that the number 4 has done 3/4 fouls and is likely to be cautioned soon if he doesn't calm it, all means that when someone does get cautioned either they knew it was coming, or it's a stone cold yellow anyway!!
Talking players through the game does not come naturally to me - it's very difficult and I've really had to work at it, but it hasn't half made a difference.
There's a few other things that I've used to cut down on dissent too:
1) Dissent is only dissent if it's aimed at you and everyone think's that you've heard it. If you're not around to hear it it's just a moaning player and it's no threat to your authority. If you've made a close call then run away to the next dropping zone: a) the assessor will think you're great for taking up the next position and b) the player who feels wronged won't bother to moan as you ain't there to be moaned at! If he does then it's easy days to C2 him for having a pop from 20-30 yards and everyone else accepts it.
2) Learning the difference between frustration and dissent: frustrated players will swear and that's fine - they're only human like you and I. If it's not personal and it's spur of the moment then ignore it - it's not a threat to your authority. If it keeps on going, or if a player chases after you then that's more than frustration.
3) Be honest with players, particularly when you have club ARs. Saying that you didn't see something because you had a crap angle as you were catching up with their quick break, or saying that a player ran right across your view, or saying that it was on the wrong side from you is absolutely fine (if it's true) and players respect that. "I'm really sorry player - I think he probably did foul you, but my view was blocked and I'd have been guessing if I'd given it. I can see that he's struggling to deal with you and I'll try to do better next time!!"
These are just my thoughts - a personal view on the changes I've made in my game to go from every game being a battle to most of the games being bloody good fun!!
(semi-joking with that last comment)
