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Reporting Cards

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WilliamD

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Level 4 Referee
is anyone brave enough to admit they sometime don’t put through cautions or dismissals? If so why?

Every week a player or (today) manager asks me “are you going to put those cards through?” It’s usually actually quite friendly and casual - probably trying to influence. It gets me wondering if this ever works? Do some referees actually not put the cards through?
 
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No, never. I can honestly say i have reported every single card I have ever given.

However, as you say, there must be referees that dont do it.

The way I see it is I am not going to jeopardise my career by not doing my administration properly... it only takes 1 person to blow you up and its curtains.

If you're not going to report it dont give it. Simples :)
 
In my experience it used to be fairly common amongst referees when I first started 21 years ago. Paperwork had to be hand written, and in duplicate, photocopies weren’t allowed, some counties wanted them in triplicate. So it was fairly common that they got “lost in the post” because referees couldn’t be bothered to actually complete the paperwork.
 
I'll admit it. I failed to submit 2 or 3 cautions in my early days. All of these were for my eldest son and the reason I didn't submit them was because I would have ended up paying the fines myself!
My son ended up as a really good level 4 referee but was a nightmare as a player!
 
Never failed to report a card and never will. In fact, got a last minute red from my u15s today to write up, more on that to follow...

Given that I referee predominantly youth footy, I think I may well have been the ref who has given a few teams their first ever card.

A couple of times after games been asked if I am going to report them. Given the way I was asked, never felt it crossed the line to warrant being a reportable offence, but have always replied with a firm but fair "I have to otherwise I could get suspended". Usually does the trick, although one u13s team felt the need to make enquiries questioning my registration and authority to issue cards! :D
 
Only time I didn't was when my daughter spilled a drink over my match sheet and managed to get the team sheets as well! Both soaked and completely illegible. Fortunately it was only from a friendly game. Lesson learnt, I always take a photo so I've got a record and make sure I do my WGS admin immediately (often from my phone in the car if it's just yellows)
 
Started in the middle this season and have done around a dozen games so far.
Have handed out around 8 or so yellows (no reds... yet) and every single one either the player or manager asked if I’m sending it in and every single time the answer was ‘I wouldn’t have booked them if I wasn’t going to send it in’.
Sooner or later I’m sure I’ll come across the same teams and if I hadn’t sent one in it sets a dangerous precedent for the future
 
Why wouldn't you send it in. I did get asked by one team if I was going to report it and I politely said yes. I had a yellow in a friendly and couldn't enter it on WGS system but rang my FA and reported it in an email and was told they would deal with it from their. I also do mainly youth footie and teams only are gobby the first time I ref them when they see me a second time they are a lot quieter. I think I am one of the few refs in my area who regulary gives out cards, most of mine are for dissent. I sometimes think I am the only ref at youth level who uses cards!
 
I always report any cards or misconduct. Even when cautioning a member of my fiancé’s team. (I sometimes get asked to help out when they don’t get a League appointed ref).

I find that players/manager only ask if I’m going to send cards in the first time I meet them.

If I have them for more games they don’t bother asking again.
 
I’ve never understood why people don’t put cards through.

I would hope it it is very much the minority of referees, especially as it takes about 2 minutes to put a group of cautions through on WGS.

But it must happen, last season our county apparently sent out an email reminding referees that they must submit cautions etc, and failure to do so could result in a charge from the county.

I don’t recall getting one, so I assumed they targeted referees who were registered for that season and hadn’t submitted any discipline.
 
Never failed to report a card and never will. In fact, got a last minute red from my u15s today to write up, more on that to follow...

Given that I referee predominantly youth footy, I think I may well have been the ref who has given a few teams their first ever card.

A couple of times after games been asked if I am going to report them. Given the way I was asked, never felt it crossed the line to warrant being a reportable offence, but have always replied with a firm but fair "I have to otherwise I could get suspended". Usually does the trick, although one u13s team felt the need to make enquiries questioning my registration and authority to issue cards! :D
My stock response was always "I'll think about it".

I always did and invariably decided to submit the report(s)!
 
I started back in the days before WGS, and even before Excel caution forms, so every caution had to be written out twice. To make it worse cautions weren't just a code then, but rather needed a description of the offence. Most referees used carbon paper so that they wrote once and created two copies. Whilst the younger people on here are probably thinking that I must be a dinosaur, I am only going back 15 years here.

So if we could do it them with all the pain and hassle of doping so, there is absolutely no excuse now with the online offering.
 
My stock response was always "I'll think about it".

I always did and invariably decided to submit the report(s)!
Thats a good one. I might try it next time depending on my mood. The concern I have is that it might lead them to think some referees might think about and then it and decide to ignore the report. So the player/manager would never stop asking.

I have never deliberately not reported/recorded cards. I have forgotten to record them on the team sheet numerous times which were reported at a later time.

Non reporting is very common here amongst the new younger fellas who are just there to make a buck and not worry about it once they leave the ground.
 
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I started back in the days before WGS, and even before Excel caution forms, so every caution had to be written out twice. To make it worse cautions weren't just a code then, but rather needed a description of the offence. Most referees used carbon paper so that they wrote once and created two copies. Whilst the younger people on here are probably thinking that I must be a dinosaur, I am only going back 15 years here.

So if we could do it them with all the pain and hassle of doping so, there is absolutely no excuse now with the online offering.
Snap and the number of referees who just can't be bothered astounds me.

I started with handwritten forms, then I had a template used in Microsoft Publisher that hit all the right areas of the report, then the Excel forms, then WGS. I see the use of apps such as RefSix is on the increase. It only takes one of these to be officially adopted so they can be done from the field at all levels of the game and then there is no excuse for those with the necessary phone/watch.
 
WGS is so easy to use, when its not being slow. I can't see why you wouldn't put them through. I have only used this system and is quick.
 
got to be totally honest in my second ever game as a ref ( before i came out of training) i gave a yellow to an 11 yr old and thats the only card ive issued however i hadnt been told how to do them infact it was last monday i found out about the Whole game system from my RDO i tried to put it in but it says you cannt input games more than a month ago ... at least i know how to do it for next time
 
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