The Ref Stop

Stockport v Wigan

Donate to RefChat

Help keep RefChat running, any donation would be appreciated

PP62

PP62

Well-Known Member
The Ref Stop
OIREF! said:
Would anyone consider stopping play and/or abandonment in such circumstances?
Click to expand...

If it is not impacting the quality of his duties, no way.

I would advise him though to step in a meter or two when play is not in his area.
 
An alternative would be to change the end that they are operating from too.
 
JamesL said:
An alternative would be to change the end that they are operating from.
Click to expand...

Agree that it is an option but I would advise against it unless both referee and the ARs have experience in the reverse system in more favourable conditions. Using it for the first time in these conditions is just a recipe for disaster.
 
Might be one of those very rare occasions when, on balance, better for an official to consciously choose to be in the 'wrong' position as it increases the chance of making the right decisions. Bit like the times where a referee chooses to stand on the RHS of the penalty area at a corner, with his back to the active AR, to avoid looking directly into the sun.
 
RefereeX said:
Horrendous idea. Did it once at the request of a club and I will never, ever do it again 😆

If I was an AR, I'd rather have hot tar dripping down on me from the roof than change and run the other end!
Click to expand...
Wait til you have to do it as a ref... Totally messed up.
 
Done it once as an AR (thankfully it was only a pre-season game) and it was a nightmare!

Done it once as a ref too (unintentionally - briefed both club ARs together and said left backs, only for both to run off to be with their right backs :facepalm:), I didn't actually find it much of a problem, although it caught the defenders out every time they appealed for offside and looked to the wrong touchline 🤣
 
  • Like
Reactions: one
ARF said:
Done it once as an AR (thankfully it was only a pre-season game) and it was a nightmare!

Done it once as a ref too (unintentionally - briefed both club ARs together and said left backs, only for both to run off to be with their right backs :facepalm:), I didn't actually find it much of a problem, although it caught the defenders out every time they appealed for offside and looked to the wrong touchline 🤣
Click to expand...
In the good old days it was the norm and then some used to change at half time, though more so at grass roots.
 
JamesL said:
Wait til you have to do it as a ref... Totally messed up.
Click to expand...

Did it once with club linos.

Looked over at the start and the assistants were in right backs position (team benches were on opposite sides).
I decided to 'style it out'.

Observer comes in at end and says positioning all over the place first half, nearly perfect second half.
He didn't comment on the position of the club assistants...
 
ARF said:
Done it once as an AR (thankfully it was only a pre-season game) and it was a nightmare!

Done it once as a ref too (unintentionally - briefed both club ARs together and said left backs, only for both to run off to be with their right backs :facepalm:), I didn't actually find it much of a problem, although it caught the defenders out every time they appealed for offside and looked to the wrong touchline 🤣
Click to expand...
Done once as AR unintentionally too. I got stuck in traffic (accident ahead of me). Called the ref and said i'll get there after kick off. He gave me instructions and said he will let the teams know and l can jump on the line mid game. Once I got there, quickly changed and got on the line 10min in, I immidiately noticed l was running on the same side as the other AR and had to switch to the other side. Figured out at HT it was the other's AR's first gig who ran off to the reverse side after coin toss. Ref decided to let it flow. No issues for me but took a while for the ref to get used to it.
 
bester said:
Did it once with club linos.

Looked over at the start and the assistants were in right backs position (team benches were on opposite sides).
I decided to 'style it out'.

Observer comes in at end and says positioning all over the place first half, nearly perfect second half.
He didn't comment on the position of the club assistants...
Click to expand...
I always find my positioning changes a lot depending on whether I have neutral ARs or club ARs anyway; did a game earlier this season on a league where I'm used to having two neutral ARs, but had two club assistants that day - first half felt like I was getting caught out of position again and again, second half felt 100 times better!
 
I think we’ve lost something by the reverse diagonal becoming disfavored. I had. 10u field with a free almost right on the line, so we always did it there. And had a full size field where the sun rose perfectly in the wrong place for a standard diagonal. For early morning games, I always did a reverse. Every time I did, one of my ARs said something like, “wow, I gotta remember that here.” But if I suggested it to an R who hadn’t done it before, I was usually greeted with a look akin to if I had three heads. I suspect part of why it fell so out of use is we never see in stadiums—but they don’t need to as they. Don’t get those conditions, I find if you do it once in a while, it really isn’t that hard to adjust.
 
OIREF! said:
Would anyone consider stopping play and/or abandonment in such circumstances?
Click to expand...
The referee did suspend play soon after this. The ground staff did a great job getting the game back on again but it took just over an hour. On social media the fans were extremely complimentary of how the officials handled the delay. The game finished 1-1 and was decided on penalties.
 
I used to dislike running the right back position as AR. I was really unimpressed when I was appointed to a NPL play off semi final and was told we were running the opposite diagonal. If it’s the referee’s preferred option it wouldn’t be fair to ask them to change.
 
I once did it on a West Ham ladies game as the left back touchlines were under water. Went to do thumbs up to ARs, looked in usual position by habit and obviously looked confused as the striker taking kick off said “he’s over there ref, he’s gone the wrong way” 😂

I saw another video from this game where the referee was wading through ankle deep water on the wing trying to decide whether to carry on. He did, and then soon suspended it for an hour.
 
DavidObs said:
In the good old days it was the norm and then some used to change at half time, though more so at grass roots.
Click to expand...
Back in the very good old days, Football League (now Premier League, Championship, Football League) AR's were with right backs in first or second half, left backs in the other.
I remember a referee at Selhurst Park pausing the game after 55 minutes to instruct the AR's to swap across to the opposite side.
Grassroots groundsmen hate "left backs" throughout!
 
There’s one L5 I know who ONLY has his ARs run right backs. I’ve only been on with him a couple of times and I genuinely thought he was joking the first time he mentioned it… apparently something to do with being left handed? Anyway, very confusing to begin with!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top