Ref Watch ..... Fleetwood and Wimbledon

[Mick]

Appointments have been announced and are as follows:

Fleetwood Town
Referee: Carl Boyeson
Assistant Referee: Alf Greenwood
Assistant Referee: Paul Newhouse
Fourth Official: Kevin Mulraine

AFC Wimbledon
Referee: Graham Horwood
Assistant Referee: Rob Smith
Assistant Referee: Callum Walchester
Fourth Official: Marc Wilson

Full details in due course.

 

[borientater]

Preferred the days when we had 'Linesmen' these assistant refs poke their noses in too much for my liking

 

[Mick]

Preferred the days when we had 'Linesmen' these assistant refs poke their noses in too much for my liking

Can't say I agree with that. One or two, a small minority, can be a bit too "busy" but generally I find Assistant Referees are unwilling to take responsibility for decisions on matters that they are far better placed to see than the referee. Some even seem reluctant to signal the direction of obvious throw-ins until receiving the subtle indications from the referee.

Whether this is because they have been instructed on minimum intervention by the referee or they lack the confidence to get involved I don't know.

Refereeing is a big challenge with 22 players most of whom, if not all, would cheat at the slightest opportunity, covering an area of about one and a half acres. The referee needs all the help he can get.

 

[SS3]

Can't say I agree with that. One or two, a small minority, can be a bit too "busy" but generally I find Assistant Referees are unwilling to take responsibility for decisions on matters that they are far better placed to see than the referee. Some even seem reluctant to signal the direction of obvious throw-ins until receiving the subtle indications from the referee.

Whether this is because they have been instructed on minimum intervention by the referee or they lack the confidence to get involved I don't know.

Refereeing is a big challenge with 22 players most of whom, if not all, would cheat at the slightest opportunity, covering an area of about one and a half acres. The referee needs all the help he can get.

This is very much what I see at a lot of games - the referees assistants are no more than glorified flag men who offer noting to the game. I think that they all need to step up and actually make signals for the decisions to be called, the referee can always overrule if he don't feel its the correct call.

I also feel that if the assistants are seen not to make judgements that are obvious and easy to call especially those where they have a better view than the Referee, that they should be demoted/fined/reprimanded in some way - while I appreciate this may cause a resource issue, it would go some way to making sure the 'lino's' are adding value and effectively doing what they are paid to do.

Also - it intrigues me, can a referee instruct his assistants to just make the signals for his decisions, and not to make any judgments themselves?