A&H

Reporting - How good a witness are you?

Yampy

RefChat Addict
My CFA is Sheffield and Hallamshire FA and in my time as a referee, I've always found the people there very helpful.
One of the resources published by S&H is a newsletter called Benchmark, edited by a gentleman called Ted Ring. In this month's newsletter, Ted has published an article entitled "How Good a Witness Are You?" I thought you'd appreciate having a read of the artcile. There is no copyright on articles originating in Benchmark, but if they are reproduced in other publications we would appreciate an acknowledgement of the origin and of Sheffield and Hallamshire County RA.

HOW GOOD A WITNESS ARE YOU?

Every time you referee a game of football you are called upon hundreds of times to make a decision based on what you have seen. Sometimes these decisions are easy, and they may effectively make themselves, such as when a player clearly kicks the ball out of play when he is unchallenged. You see him do it, there is no controversy, so you decide the restart will be taken by an opponent.

There are times, however, when you have to make a potentially controversial decision, and you base that decision on what you have seen happen. It could possibly be a decision based on what you BELIEVE has happened; because that is the way you interpret what has happened.

Then there are those times when you decide that you have no alternative but to issue a caution or a dismissal. That is when you need to be a really careful witness of what has just happened. A very large percentage of referees make correct decisions in such circumstances. After the game, they travel home and then submit their report to the appropriate authority. If it is a caution, the procedure is fairly straightforward. If there has been a dismissal then the report needs to be given much more thought. After all, a dismissal might eventually lead to a personal hearing.

The Personal Hearing

If your report about a dismissal offence has been thoughtfully prepared and carefully checked before submission, there is a strong likelihood that there will be no appeal and no personal hearing. Be warned, however, that far too many referees let themselves down at this stage. Why? Because they have submitted reports that are simply not good enough!

A personal hearing is heard by a group of experienced members appointed by the County FA, whose task it is to ensure that justice is done. And justice is not likely to favour the referee’s report if it has been badly prepared. The disciplinary panel members rely on the referee’s picture in words of what happened. They need to be able to envisage the incident that happened.

So, what are the vital contents of a good report by the referee? He or she is the FA’s witness, so the report writing task needs to be done correctly.

We invite you to consider these letters --- W, W, W, W, H and V. These six letters represent what are the essential contents of a good report. Let’s examine them, shall we?

W --- WHO? Who committed the alleged offence?

W --- WHAT? What did this person do?

W --- WHEN? When in the game did the incident take place?

W --- WHERE? Where on the field of play or in its vicinity did it happen?

H --- HOW? How, meaning in what manner, did it happen?

V --- VIEW? What view and from what approximate distance and angle did you see the incident?

If all these vital facts are included in the report, then the disciplinary panel will know fairly accurately what happened and they will consequently make the right decision. There is nothing more frustrating for a panel than to be faced with a poor report that contains insufficient evidence.

Here are two kinds of report that are simply not acceptable ---

I sent XXXXX off because he kicked his opponent. (End of report!)

I red-carded XXXXX when he told me I was a useless p-----k.

Here now are two reports that would be considered good in terms of their content and wording ---

I sent XXXXX of Reds from the field of play after he kicked his opponent hard on the shin just outside the Reds’ penalty-area after 73 minutes. I was approximately ten yards away at the time, having a clear side-on view of the incident.(Not a long report, but it paints a reasonable picture of the incident)

XXXXX came towards me as soon as I had blown the whistle for half-time and angrily shouted, ‘You must be f-----g blind, you c—t, if you didn’t see that just now! You’re just another f-----g useless ref’. I was five yards from him and immediately facing him. I told him he was being dismissed and would take no further part in the game.

You are invited to give serious consideration to the quality of your disciplinary reports. Do you fall below a reasonable standard, or are you doing your best to make sure your reports are water-tight and so are less likely to lead to a personal hearing?

Think of those key letters ----- W, W, W, W, H, V. They may just help you!

REPORT-WRITING is an essential part of refereeing, so do it to the best of your ability!
 
The Referee Store
I never make a decision on what i " believe" happened, i have to be 100% on my decision. I seeit, i give it, if i'm not 100% I err on the side of caution.
 
So basically, put some creamy butter on your report, and you won't cost the County FA their Cream!!! :redcard:
 
Can't say I've ever once referred to the position on the pitch a red card offence has taken place.
Unless it's DOGSO, this is irrelevent information IMO
 
My most recent red card report read:

In the 24th minute of the game, Mr XXXXXX committed a lunging two footed challenge with excessive force which endangered the safety of his opponent.
I stopped play, dismissed Mr XXXXX from the field of play and showed a red card.
 
My most recent red card report read:

In the 24th minute of the game, Mr XXXXXX committed a lunging two footed challenge with excessive force which endangered the safety of his opponent.
I stopped play, dismissed Mr XXXXX from the field of play and showed a red card.

Agreed. You don't need to fill it out with waffle. Clear facts, that's all you need.
 
My CFA hate my reports, coming from the Policing background I tend to write almost court worthy statements...never had a card disputed let alone overturned once they've read the full 10 pages ;)

That being said, any one ever want any help to beef up a good report gimme a shout!!
 
My CFA hate my reports, coming from the Policing background I tend to write almost court worthy statements...never had a card disputed let alone overturned once they've read the full 10 pages ;)

That being said, any one ever want any help to beef up a good report gimme a shout!!

The more you write the more there is to challenge.

We are not policemen, we are not preparing evidentiary material to a criminal standard........pissing your CFA discipline manager with needlessly wordy waffling reports is not normally conducive to a healthy refereeing career.
 
The more you write the more there is to challenge.

We are not policemen, we are not preparing evidentiary material to a criminal standard........pissing your CFA discipline manager with needlessly wordy waffling reports is not normally conducive to a healthy refereeing career.

Although my comment was tinged with sarcasm, I must say I never once implied i beef it out with "needlessly wordy waffling". They are indeed simply detailed, direct and arguably much easier to deal with for the CFA in my experience
 
I'm interested whether people always quote the time of an incident. I've heard arguments both for and against it, but most advice seems to say always quote the time. However, something like violent conduct would be a sending off in any minute of the match, so doesn't the time become an irrelevant piece of information?

For those who always include it, is there a particular reason or just a case of 'it does no harm, so why not'?
 
The things I tell people to include are the following:

What was the incident (one to two sentences describing the actual incident)?
What was the offence (reference wording from Laws directly)?
When did this happen (the time)?
Who was involved (the offender plus the fended, if there is one)?
How did the offender act after dismissal (ie, walk off quietly, scream and rage, etc, this can also lead to a supplementary report)?
How did you restart the match?

Most of these can be a single sentence, and thus a typical sending off report should be about five to six sentences long (some of the above can be combined, obviously).
 
The things I tell people to include are the following:

What was the incident (one to two sentences describing the actual incident)?
What was the offence (reference wording from Laws directly)?
When did this happen (the time)?
Who was involved (the offender plus the fended, if there is one)?
How did the offender act after dismissal (ie, walk off quietly, scream and rage, etc, this can also lead to a supplementary report)?
How did you restart the match?

Most of these can be a single sentence, and thus a typical sending off report should be about five to six sentences long (some of the above can be combined, obviously).

There is no need to include details of the restart. This is irrelevant information and adds no value to a report. It's waffle actually. No offence meant.
 
My most recent red card report read:

In the 24th minute of the game, Mr XXXXXX committed a lunging two footed challenge with excessive force which endangered the safety of his opponent.
I stopped play, dismissed Mr XXXXX from the field of play and showed a red card.
[/Q
There is no need to include details of the restart. This is irrelevant information and adds no value to a report. It's waffle actually. No offence meant.

The restart is very much needed, it just rubber stamps the whole incident that you are talking about and can paint a better picture of the incident to a panel who were not present to see it, it also is the natural end to the report when you quote "I stopped play.blah blah blah blah and restarted with a direct free kick to the opponents......etc" it just paints a clear picture to sometimes the uneducated of what exactly happened. Its almost the same thinking as what most referees would ask from an AR in an off the ball incident who was it, what did they do, whats the sanction, where are they and how am I restarting play....
 
The inclusion of the restart is utterly irrelevant to the misconduct committed, therefore it is just padding if added.
 
* Content of Report - Neat / tidy - draft - re-write

- Factually correct - no contradictions

- Comprehensive whilst concise

- Position of incident / method of restart / treatment required.

- Check report before submitting

- “Do you wish to add anything to your report ?”

- If in doubt seek advice.


this is the SFA grass roots/public park template. Apologises if its different in England but this is the required information as taught.
 
Back
Top