You wait ages for an observation then 2 come along at once

[Brian Hamilton]

The AOL section seems to have been written against the Performance Criteria for L4. I disagree with some of the stuff, for example walking backwards to measure 9.15m. Better to stride forward and use occasional looks over the shoulder to ensure the ball hasn't been moved.

As for time added, 1 minute does seem very short for a 2nd half when most subs will have taken place. Other than that some really good stuff in here. Well done.

 

[RustyRef]

The AOL section seems to have been written against the Performance Criteria for L4. I disagree with some of the stuff, for example walking backwards to measure 9.15m. Better to stride forward and use occasional looks over the shoulder to ensure the ball hasn't been moved.

Completely agree. If this observer does usually operate on level 4 observations, I'd be very worried that he is advising candidates to pace out the wall backwards. He is effectively telling the referee to turn his back on around 17 players, and that is incredibly bad advice, and advice that went out with the dinosaurs.

 

[Kent Ref]

Out of interest why did you not give the second yellow?

When i went for my promotion i had a similar situation but the assessor questioned why not a strong last warning (i sent him off for two yellows). As referees we cannot win!

I've never been an assessor but from my experience all those years ago i found them to all have very different views on everything. One hid behind a tree (before the game started) and never even spoke to me at all!

 

[JamesL]

One hid behind a tree (before the game started) and never even spoke to me at all!

I am of the understanding that this behaviour would result in a voiding of the scoring.

In other news had my first observation on supply league almost 3 months in, and it was only by luck.

Think it went well and looking forward to the report.

 

[Kent Ref]

This was many years ago so maybe the protocols were different then.

I also had a phone call from the head of county assessors asking why i did not referee the game i said i was going to be doing. I did ref that game but did not see an assessor but i was told he turned up to an empty pitch and went home! Things were different in the 90s!

 

[zarathustra]

Out of interest why did you not give the second yellow?

At that particular point in the match, while incorrect in law I felt it was the best approach.

The temperature of the match had died down at that point, and the player had kept his nose clean following his caution, so I felt that showing a bit of empathy for the match would be more beneficial to my over all match control than sticking rigidly to the laws.

Would I do the same thing in my match on Saturday? Probably not, I'm normally very strict on people kicking the ball away, but I was in a good mood.

 

[JamesL]

At that particular point in the match, while incorrect in law I felt it was the best approach.

The temperature of the match had died down at that point, and the player had kept his nose clean following his caution, so I felt that showing a bit of empathy for the match would be more beneficial to my over all match control than sticking rigidly to the laws.

Would I do the same thing in my match on Saturday? Probably not, I'm normally very strict on people kicking the ball away, but I was in a good mood.

Whilst it worked for you on this occasion... if it hadnt I would expect an observer to mark me down for it.

I failed to issue a mandatory once in favour of "managing" the game. It backfired as nothing else happened so it was all i could be marked on really. It was the main chat in the debrief and I vowed never again to attempt to manage with an observer again.

Your point regarding match control. What if all the other players saw that lenience and all started kicking the ball away. Does everyone get 1 chance. Or just the 1 player? The point I make here as failure to issue the caution in some cases could just as easily harm match control for a variety of reasons.

I've no argument with your approach, just my "what is my observer expecting" hat on.

 

[zarathustra]

Whilst it worked for you on this occasion... if it hadnt I would expect an observer to mark me down for it.

I failed to issue a mandatory once in favour of "managing" the game. It backfired as nothing else happened so it was all i could be marked on really. It was the main chat in the debrief and I vowed never again to attempt to manage with an observer again.

Your point regarding match control. What if all the other players saw that lenience and all started kicking the ball away. Does everyone get 1 chance. Or just the 1 player? The point I make here as failure to issue the caution in some cases could just as easily harm match control for a variety of reasons.

I've no argument with your approach, just my "what is my observer expecting" hat on.

The fact i was getting observed didn't cross my mind at that point.

I accept your point regarding leniency, and agree that perhaps on this occasion I got lucky.

I guess part of my reasoning was that his attempt to delay the restart wasn't very good, the ball went to the opposition keeper (about 15 - 20yds away), so any delay was minimal. I he'd booted it on to one of the neighbouring pitches or into the trees etc then that would have been different.

Managing mandatory cautions isn't something I'd normally do, and in my capacity as a mentor I wouldn't advise a new referee to try it.

Obviously I'm not trying to justify my decision, just my reasoning for it, and if the observer had marked me down for it then I would have taken it on the chin.

 

[Brian Hamilton]

The fact i was getting observed didn't cross my mind at that point.

I accept your point regarding leniency, and agree that perhaps on this occasion I got lucky.

I guess part of my reasoning was that his attempt to delay the restart wasn't very good, the ball went to the opposition keeper (about 15 - 20yds away), so any delay was minimal. I he'd booted it on to one of the neighbouring pitches or into the trees etc then that would have been different.

Managing mandatory cautions isn't something I'd normally do, and in my capacity as a mentor I wouldn't advise a new referee to try it.

Obviously I'm not trying to justify my decision, just my reasoning for it, and if the observer had marked me down for it then I would have taken it on the chin.

Absolutely brilliant that you analyse your games. Keep this up and you'll go far.

 

[Padfoot]

If you were incorrect in law for not cautioning the player who kicked the ball away.....you cannot then get "Above standard expected"! It's either a missed caution or it isn't.....given that delaying the restart of play is a mandatory caution......hard to see how it isn't a missed caution.

Also, nothing in the report to justify the "challenging" game tag. What made it "challenging"? Almost reads like the observer has only ticked that box to justify his award of "above standard" in certain areas, without offering any evidence to support it.

Also....if you were short by 3 minutes in additional time, that would probably fit in alertness and awareness which would cast doubt on the "above standard" rating, and really should be a development point rather than just an additional comment.

Sorry to be the rain on your parade, but not overly impressed by the standard of observation....seems quite wordy just for the sake of being wordy.

 

[zarathustra]

If you were incorrect in law for not cautioning the player who kicked the ball away.....you cannot then get "Above standard expected"! It's either a missed caution or it isn't.....given that delaying the restart of play is a mandatory caution......hard to see how it isn't a missed caution.

Can't argue with that.

Also, nothing in the report to justify the "challenging" game tag. What made it "challenging"? Almost reads like the observer has only ticked that box to justify his award of "above standard" in certain areas, without offering any evidence to support it.

I didn't think that it was challenging, there were some parts where I need to stamp my authority, but I never felt like the game was getting away from me.

Also....if you were short by 3 minutes in additional time, that would probably fit in alertness and awareness which would cast doubt on the "above standard" rating, and really should be a development point rather than just an additional comment.

While I agree that 1 minute of additional time may have been a bit short, I'm not convinced that I was short by 3 minutes.

Sorry to be the rain on your parade, but not overly impressed by the standard of observation....seems quite wordy just for the sake of being wordy.

No need to be sorry, not being an observer, and only being a level 6 this is only the 4th observation I have ever had, it did seem very wordy compared to previous observations, but I don't have the experience to say whether the content of an observation is good or bad i.e. whether it is well written etc not whether they give you an above standard expected etc.