Referee Questionnaire

[ItsTom]

Dear all,

I am a year 12 student. Currently, I'm in the writing phase for my extended project qualification (EPQ) in which I aim to explore the use of Television Match Officials (TMOs) in rugby, evaluate whether it has proved successful and whether there is a need for technological assistance in football in the form of Video Assistant Referees (VARs). It is my intention to gain a deeper knowledge of the technology in question (pros and cons) and, hopefully, receive a wide array of contrasting opinions which I can then reference in my project.

With this in mind, I would be very appreciative if you could provide me with any information regarding the history of VARs in football, but also it would be great if you could potentially complete the following survey which will go along way in aiding my research: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/TNDXC5K (should only take a couple of minutes to complete, although I appreciate referees have extremely busy schedules!)

Thanks for taking the time to read this email, any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[drahc]

I did your questionnaire Tom, and wish you the best of luck with your EPQ.

Just a note though, you are highly unlikely to find referees who have used VARs - it is only just being ruled out, and this is on the international stage. Thus, the very limited number of referees who have used it would be spread across the world, and would be difficult to contact (indeed, none are part of this forum)

 

[RefJef]

Just a note though, you are highly unlikely to find referees who have used VARs - it is only just being rolled* out, and this is on the international stage. Thus, the very limited number of referees who have used it would be spread across the world, and would be difficult to contact (indeed, none are part of this forum)

*my correction

@ItsTom , @drahc is correct in what he states above, you aren't going to get anything useful from that questionnaire. However, don't disregard it entirely - the EPQ is marked holistically, that means it is not just marked on the final essay you produce. Most of the marks are for the actual process. Coming up with an idea as you have done (the questionnaire) which then turns out to be useless can be a good thing as you can show why it has not been a good source of information, and how you have adapted your project as a result.

It sounds like you have a good understanding of the EPQ - it is always good to have a question (have TMOs been successful) which you can then analyse before reaching your own conclusion based on the evidence and sources you have used. There are also good marks to be had for critically reviewing the sources you use, and explaining why some are good sources, and some are not. So, to re-iterate, this survey can still be useful to you as you can cite it as a source that you have rejected as being unreliable as not enough referees who have used VAR completed the survey.

(In the day job, I am an EPQ supervisor/marker)

HTH

J

 

[Peter Grove]

With this in mind, I would be very appreciative if you could provide me with any information regarding the history of VARs in football ...

The best places to get information on the history of VAR's in football are the FIFA and IFAB websites - http://www.fifa.com and http://theifab.com

 

[RefJef]

The best places to get information on the history of VAR's in football are the FIFA and IFAB websites - http://www.fifa.com and http://theifab.com

But why are they the "best places to get information"? To get the top marks in an EPQ the OP must be asking - and answering - that question. Evaluate the sources.

Peter may well be right (I'm not having a pop at him, just trying to guide the OP) Haven't FIFA announced that they want to use VARs in Russia '18, so perhaps there is a bias in FIFA to suggest that the trials have been more successful than they were? (I don't know - it's not my EPQ - but these are the areas the OP needs to be exploring.)

 

[santa sangria]

I filled it. Good luck with finding some officials who used VARs to fill it.

 

[J79]

During the Confederations Cup it was said that there had only been 76 games with VAR so far (think it was before the last day, would be 78 by now), so it might indeed be difficult to get in touch with referees who have alrady used it, maybe you could change your questionnaire a little.

 

[ItsTom]

*my correction

@ItsTom , @drahc is correct in what he states above, you aren't going to get anything useful from that questionnaire. However, don't disregard it entirely - the EPQ is marked holistically, that means it is not just marked on the final essay you produce. Most of the marks are for the actual process. Coming up with an idea as you have done (the questionnaire) which then turns out to be useless can be a good thing as you can show why it has not been a good source of information, and how you have adapted your project as a result.

It sounds like you have a good understanding of the EPQ - it is always good to have a question (have TMOs been successful) which you can then analyse before reaching your own conclusion based on the evidence and sources you have used. There are also good marks to be had for critically reviewing the sources you use, and explaining why some are good sources, and some are not. So, to re-iterate, this survey can still be useful to you as you can cite it as a source that you have rejected as being unreliable as not enough referees who have used VAR completed the survey.

(In the day job, I am an EPQ supervisor/marker)

HTH

J

@drahc @RefJef Many thanks for the feedback, you are both exactly right when you talk about the limited number of referees who have access to VARs. However, one of my aims for the survey is to gain a greater awareness of the technology and what supporters think of these implementations, rather than solely the perspectives of referees. Having said this, I believe you both pointed out a fundamental flaw with my survey, namely the fact that it does not seem suited to responses from individuals who are not referees. Therefore, I've added a N/A option to question 1 which should make it more clear to potential respondents that they do not have to have a history in refereeing in order to answer my survey. While the vast bulk of questions on the survey do revolve around some form of refereeing experience, I believe questions such as "Would you like to referee alongside a VAR?" can still be completed and will still serve a purpose for my project by summarising a supporter's (in this instance) opinion.

@RefJef You are exactly right about the EPQ emphasis being placed upon the process, I will no doubt be adding to my 'Production Log' instances where I went wrong (particularly with the survey and how it was best suited to such a niche vocational cohort) and how I would have improved this (i.e. by formatting the survey to account for a more universal target audience). Many thanks for your comments, might just mention you in my log!

 

[ItsTom]

I filled it. Good luck with finding some officials who used VARs to fill it.

Much appreciated! Yeah, it's a lot harder than I expected, I've only received one response from a referee who's had firsthand experience to date.

 

[ItsTom]

During the Confederations Cup it was said that there had only been 76 games with VAR so far (think it was before the last day, would be 78 by now), so it might indeed be difficult to get in touch with referees who have alrady used it, maybe you could change your questionnaire a little.

Thanks, I value your input greatly. I do agree with your comment, although VAR has since been trialed in the MLS, a handful of college-level games, in the Chinese Super League and, of course, at international level. However, I certainly agree it's still very much a select number of referees who've had the technology at their disposal. Without a doubt, I'd be better versed to write this EPQ next year when the Bundesliga has had some time to adapt to the technology (and after, no doubt, other leagues have followed suit) although the deadline is October so this isn't really an option for me. Irrespective of this, I agree 100% with you and this is certainly an error of judgement on my part.

 

[RefJef]

T Without a doubt, I'd be better versed to write this EPQ next year when the Bundesliga has had some time to adapt to the technology (and after, no doubt, other leagues have followed suit) although the deadline is October so this isn't really an option for me. Irrespective of this, I agree 100% with you and this is certainly an error of judgement on my part.

Excellent: you've identified a problem with your initial plan - although it is not an error of judgement on your part. You write about how there is still a lack of evidence to make an informed decision on the the use of VARs in football. You have critically analysed (one/some) your source, and you have rejected it, giving your reasons why. This is good - you are making evidence based decisions and you are adapting.

You perhaps write something about how more useful research could be done this time next year after the Bundesliga has used the technology, and you focus on whether TMOs have been successful in rugby (perhaps also compare and contrast with other sports - cricket & tennis spring to mind) and what lessons football could learn as it seeks to introduce video technology.

An EPQ that doesn't (have to) adapt as the project unfolds is doomed to never achieve the highest grades.

 

[ItsTom]

Excellent: you've identified a problem with your initial plan - although it is not an error of judgement on your part. You write about how there is still a lack of evidence to make an informed decision on the the use of VARs in football. You have critically analysed (one/some) your source, and you have rejected it, giving your reasons why. This is good - you are making evidence based decisions and you are adapting.

You perhaps write something about how more useful research could be done this time next year after the Bundesliga has used the technology, and you focus on whether TMOs have been successful in rugby (perhaps also compare and contrast with other sports - cricket & tennis spring to mind) and what lessons football could learn as it seeks to introduce video technology.

An EPQ that doesn't (have to) adapt as the project unfolds is doomed to never achieve the highest grades.

I agree and will certainly be sure to raise any problems and adaptations that come about as a result in my 'Production Log'. In terms of drawing comparisons to other sports such as cricket & tennis, this is something which I have deeply pondered although I am set on using the title 'Based on the success of video replay technology in rugby, should it be used in football to aid match officiating?' and therefore I don't really want to go off on a tangent about sports other than the two in question. Having said this, I will certainly refer to the use of HawkEye technology in tennis and cricket in passing. I also understand that with this title I will have to briefly mention what I define as a 'success' which won't be easy, but I think it's definitely better to word the title like this with the assumption is that it has indeed been a success.