The Arrival of the Techno-Ref? My Two penn'orth

By Albatross
January 12 2005

Isn't it amazing that one disallowed goal can cause so much debate? Refereeing Standards are under the microscope, and some believe that Technology can ride to the rescue. I'm less than convinced myself...

The situation with officiating the game is becoming increasingly complex, and there are more and more factors coming into play. While the current debate is of course being fuelled by the "What goal" incident in Tuesday's Man Utd v Spurs match, it seems that more and more often fans at every level are talking about the standards of refereeing. Is it really lower than it was a few years ago? Or is it simply that controversial incidents are analysed, shown from a dozen different angles, and then the officials are criticised for not getting it right in a split second from the only point of view available to them?

With discussions raising their heads once more about the use of technology it's tempting to think that we should be able to provide more assistance to the man in the middle. It's not that easy though - in terms of refereeing a game, the last significant innovation that has helped improve things was the "Diagonal" system pioneered by Sir Stanley Rous in the early years of the 20th Century and still used with variations today. This is in part because of the demand that whatever is used at the highest level should be able to be used pretty much anywhere - although this is starting to change with rumours that the International Board is to see a technology demonstration at the Millennium Stadium soon - and also the demand for whatever is implemented to be able to give instant results - in other words a Video Referee, as used in the likes of Rugby League and Cricket, is simply not an option. This makes sense in my opinion - RL and Cricket are both games that have what you might call "natural breaks" in play, while in Football you might have several minutes of action before play can be stopped - unless it's instant (and a Video Ref can't be) it would be impractical.

It has to be said that in many ways a Ref's life is also getting harder. Every controversial decision at the top level will be subjected to much more analysis, and with the amount of money that can potentially be riding on particular results clubs are more likely to criticise - after all, when a decision is felt to cost one side a game, and the points lost might have prevented relegation or earned a Champions League place, millions are at stake. In some ways it's only a wonder that a bolshy club chairman hasn't threatened to sue a Ref or his employers! Simultaneously new directives are being issued all the time that mean that in some cases a Ref may feel that he dare not use his common sense because it won't go down well on an assessors report; would the Ref have given Tranmere's Chris Dagnall, a teenager who had just scored a vital goal for his side, a second yellow for over celebrating against Pools earlier in the season if he had been able to use his common sense? Would Matty Robson have been booked for celebrating his debut goal at Peterborough with such exuberance last season?

Many of them don't help themselves though. Too many Refs seem to want to be the centre of attention, almost revelling in the spotlight; and there's very few that seem to be prepared to hold their hand up and admit that they've made an honest mistake on occasion - one or two have, but the majority either won't or can't, and as a result things that may have been allowed to pass with less comment a few years ago become major talking points. What is more, the top Refs are now Professional and to a degree that provides more grounds for criticism - there are many now who are not seen as lovers of football doing a thankless task for not much reward, but as professionals doing a job that they are therefore expected to do better. Yes the full-time Refs are fitter - and need to be - but then again the rewards are now considerable and so there's less latitude given by players, managers and fans.

While chants questioning the Referee's parentage or personal habits have been around for a heck of a long time, there's a lingering suspicion - especially at the lower levels - that these days a Ref is trying more to get himself (or on rare occasions herself) noticed in order to try and get into the Elite group. Given the adage that a Ref's had a good game only if you don't notice him, the suspicion is that some officials will seek, if you like, to impose themselves on the game a little too much to at least make them memorable to the match assessors. For example, one of the current crop of top Referees, in charge at Old Trafford on Tuesday, is Mark Clattenburg from County Durham; however go back a couple of seasons and you'll find some scorching criticism from Rochdaleafc.com's "Cullenwatch" column, which christened him "The Anti-Dale" and expressed the opinion that he shouldn't even be on the League List. Meanwhile Steve Baines - the first ex-Pro to make it onto the League List - was generally regarded as a decent Ref by most fans in the lower divisions but failed to make the Elite group before he retired.

As much as anything though it's about respect. Many players now seem to crowd around officials if a decision doesn't go their way, possibly with the thought that it may swing the next decision; and the amount of lip that some seem to give certainly doesn't speak of respect for the officials. It's a far cry from the philosophy of the late Brian Clough, who went for completely the opposite route; he made sure that there was no backchat, and by all accounts Referees loved being in charge of a game when his team was playing. Maybe they even gave his players the benefit of the doubt on occasion. Arguably though some Refs seem to do little to earn respect, and so the cycle continues in a downwards spiral. Meanwhile one of the most recognisable and highest regarded Refs of recent years - Collina - was respected by pretty much everyone, and surely not simply because of his piercing stare. Collina made mistakes like every Ref in the history of the game has - but such was the respect he was held in that he was rarely questioned and most of them passed with little comment. Maybe the secret for some of our Refs is to make themselves distinctive by their appearance rather than extrovert style; but if there's a deeper problem in how our officials are perceived and treated, then all the technology in the world won't put that right.