Edition 15
November 2014
IN THIS EDITION . . . New tutors air their views . . . Young Referees’
Development Days report . . . RA-FA report . . . development and training update .
. . a crossword . . . and questions for tutors to consider . . .
EDITOR’S NOTES.
With the season now well under way, demands on tutors’ time are high, especially so as we have
fewer qualified tutors in the county than previously. This has come about as a result of some tutors
electing to discontinue, others having not met the new FA criteria for registration, and moves out of
the area.
Hampshire FA has taken positive steps to address this situation, and as reported in our last newsletter
we have a number of new tutors in training, 8 in total. An evening workshop on Monday 8th
September at Winklebury saw them all try out their tutoring in a safe and supportive environment
with plenty of advice and feedback being provided by the senior tutor group. All will be assisting with
Basic Referees courses and some actually assisted with the delivery of the training at the Young
Referees Development Day. Seven of the eight have now completed the Develop the Developer
training course which is the required first stage of the FA’s package for trainee tutors. They have all
been nominated to attend the next available Level 1 Tutor course in May 2015.
Our first article in this newsletter is a summary of thoughts from three of those new tutors at this
early stage of their tutoring journey.
THE VIEWS OF THREE OF OUR NEW TRAINEE TUTORS.
Alex James (Referee; Referee Youth Co-ordinator; Appointments Secretary,
Bournemouth)
What did you find most difficult in your first presentation?
It was difficult to keep in a 10 minute slot and not run over; due to, by running over the allotted time
can cause a knock on affect to the other tutors sessions.
Have you revisited the laws book now you are hoping to become a tutor?
Yes, as I feel I owe it to the referees to teach them the correct teachings, as by teaching something
that is wrong could lead to incorrect decisions in the referee’s matches.
Which aspect of practical training concerns you most (if any)?
The basic sessions, which as a referee comes very natural, but is difficult to teach a brand new
referee, where they are unable to rely on past experiences to help them and making sure the way I
come across is relevant and understandable.
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How much support did you need from your mentor before the first presentation?
I needed some support to make sure I was on the right lines and making sure that my session was
relevant, but to keep all the learners involved and active in the session.
At this early stage, what do you see as the biggest challenge in becoming a tutor?
To adapt myself to different teaching methods, as I feel they learn best practically, however the
learners may learn better in a classroom using visual aids.
Also to think on my feet if anything goes wrong or there is challenges that need to be overcome.
Gary Pratt (Referee; Hampshire FA Operations Administrator, County Cups)
Although, I am extremely new to the tutoring experience, I personally have gained a wealth of
knowledge in that short period of time.
As part of my employment, I have to present in front of audiences, and am pretty comfortable in
doing so. However, when completing the Develop the Developer course, I have learnt a whole new
aspect of presenting, and some techniques of engaging with your audience which I would not have
even thought about. I have been on a lot of FA Courses, but have to say that this was the most I
have ever learnt.
It would be remiss of me not to mention the information given to the new group of tutors at the
Level 1 Tutor CPD evening in August. This evening gave me valuable organising tools to be able to
plan a session, especially as you do not have much time to deliver a potentially important subject in
the syllabus.
When I planned my first session, I was surprised to find myself doubting myself about the pitch
dimensions. The Laws of the game got a battering, with a number of pages being read over and over
again!! Even better than this, a number of potential tutors did not know the pitch dimensions
themselves!! (Editor’s note: Gary will soon be using “field of play”!!)
First lesson was learnt – know the subject you are teaching!!
But the session was a struggle, not for the content, but the time you have to produce an informative
and enjoyable session. That minute you over run can really extend the day, especially if everyone
does it. So for me to run over by 5 minutes, whilst being unfinished, was an eye opener.
Second lesson – ‘Must know? Should know? Could Know?’
It is very valuable to have a mentor for the early stages as a tutor, especially as you can use their
experiences and get tips on how to approach certain subjects. I would say that even if you are a very
experienced tutor, it is always worth asking for a second opinion if you are not sure. Using the ‘Must
know? Should know? Could know?’ technique has helped me endlessly in planning a session to a
timeframe.
I am very excited about the way forward, but am very aware of the different variables that you may
have to encounter as a tutor. Will you have a difficult student? Will the weather change your plans?
With this, the best advice I have received is to remember your session plans, and always be prepared
to adapt.
Richard Honey, Referee; Chairman, Hampshire FA Referee Youth Council; Vice-Chairman,
Hampshire County Referees' Association
What did you find most difficult in your first presentation?
We had been given a topic to present within ten minutes (mine was Law 3 – the Number of Players),
and trying to make sure I covered everything within this timeframe and stick to the strict time limit
we were given was extremely difficult. It was hard to try not to teach ‘everything you know’ on the
subject matter, and instead focus on those things that potential candidates ‘must’ or ‘should’ know.
Building in time for potential difficulties with candidates or to answer questions was also difficult, and
learning to delay questions until a future break when it would be more effective for the group (or
because I was unsure of the answer!).
What surprised you about what you have learned so far as a tutor?
Having the opportunity to go to St George’s Park in September on the ‘Develop the Developer’ course
gave us all an insight into the variety of different teaching methods available when trying to present a
topic. The importance of practical training in ensuring new candidates are able to referee their first
games is clearly very important but some topics cannot be taught practically – but this does not mean
that such sessions have to be ‘boring’! We looked at a variety of different techniques for teaching
these sessions and these will be extremely useful in due course. Discussions and ideas were also
aided by the experiences of upcoming tutors in other areas of the game, such as coaching.
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Have you had to revisit the Laws book now you are hoping to become a tutor?
Yes! Knowing the practical application of the Laws (or at least being perceived to know them) when
you are out refereeing is completely different to knowing the exact wording and interpretation for
young candidates who throw curveball questions at you on a course!
Which aspect of practical training concerns you most (if any)?
Being able to ensure all candidates are involved in a session whilst also not becoming bored. I have
seen that it can sometimes be difficult to devise a practical session which gives candidates the ‘must’
and ‘should’ knows about a specific area of law without becoming overly repetitive and potentially
‘boring’ by making sure that the session progresses through different elements of a law or provides
novel situations that each candidate will be able to learn from. Practical sessions also seem to have
the ability to go horribly wrong if not prepared thoroughly!
At this early stage, what do you see as the biggest challenge in becoming a tutor?
Trying to fit tutoring into my already hectic refereeing schedule!
YOUNG REFEREES’ DEVELOPMENT DAY (Contributed by Paul Roots)
On Monday 27th October we held our third and final Young Referees’ Development Day of 2014. Four
practical sessions were run throughout the day focusing on the days theme of 'Being in the right
place at the right time'. Our very own member Ross Murphy rounded the day off sharing his
experiences at the recent Under 15's Premier League Tournament that he attended.
OFFSIDE
Outdoor Section
•
The session was headed by Andy Moisey assisted by Ross Murphy
•
The aim was to show young referees what their offside decisions as an assistant
looked like on camera
•
Two volunteers (one attacker and one defender) would run past each other at speed
in front of the camera
•
Around the moment of crossing paths a ball would be kicked in the way of the
attacker
•
It was then that the assistant had to make a call of offside or not
•
Every young referee would be given two opportunities to make a decision
Indoor Section
•
The referees were then taken inside to the conference centre where we would
analyse the decisions on the big screen
•
Our main focus was not on if the call was right or wrong but how we can see why the
assistant made the call he/she did
•
Dean Treleaven sat in on this part of the activity and reminded the referees that if
the call is really close it is likely the attacker is onside; there is often a tendency to
stick the flag up in panic
•
Another clear issue was positioning, if the assistant was not in line with the defender
he/she was often incorrect, highlighting the importance of always being in line
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FREE KICK MANAGEMENT
The first part of the session, the referees were tested on their 9.15 metres (10 yards), to see if they
were marking their wall out correctly.
Next they were dealing with dissent from their fellow referee, which is never easy, and managing the
defensive wall and taking up their next position for when the free kick is taken.
Also for some lucky referees, they had the chance to use shaving foam to help them deal with the
defensive wall and the management of the ball when dealing with the wall.
We hope the referees will take away new teachings into their next games, which will aid their match
control when dealing with dissent after the awarding of an attacking free kick.
SPEED & AGILITY
Dean Treleaven led the fitness workshop at the YRDD. The session was based around having an
ability to have the burst of speed required to be in the right place at the right time; which of course
was the theme of the development day. Dean led a warm up that he stated was similar to that of any
Conference or Football League game that he officiates regularly. The groups of young referees were
guided through a range of mostly leg-orientated stretches that would enable them to perform to a
higher standard during the rest of the session, while also lowering any potential risk of muscle strains
or injury. The bulk of the 40 minutes was then used to test each participant’s agility and speed, as a
‘dynamic movement’ (such as side-stepping, grapevine, or backwards running) would lead into a
small 20 metre burst of speed, with myself and Dean advising each person as to how they might
improve their transition. The sprinting distance was then extended to 50m, and Dean would time
each referee to see whether their speed would be enough to pass a Supply League fitness test. To
finish off, Dean took everyone through a gentle warm down to prevent any possible strain after the
session had finished. All in all I felt that the referees enjoyed not only the competitive aspect of the
workshop, but also the chance for them to set small individual goals. This was clear to see as they
compared times with each other, and learnt from the mistakes and successes of other people in their
group.
POSITIONING IN OPEN PLAY
The outdoor activity ran by Sam Charles and Chairman Richard Honey was focusing on positioning
and movement in open play. This involved a referee and an assistant taking on roles in different
areas on the field of play.
The activity consisted of three areas where the referee could stand, one being the red area, which
was closer to the halfway line and out of position, the next was an amber area, which was a little bit
closer to the play in the penalty area but still wasn’t a credible enough position to give a decision, the
final area was the green, which was just inside the penalty area the referee was in a credible
position.
The assistant referee had a similar role on the line in which they had the three areas again, red,
amber and green. The aim of having the assistant there was to see who was more credible in making
decisions. For example, when the referee was in the red area and the assistant in the green, the
assistant was in a more credible position to give the decision whether it is a free kick, penalty etc.
The exercise demonstrated the importance of being in the ‘right place’ at the ‘right time’.
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Without being a credible distance from the incident and with a good angle on play, the referee found
it difficult to sell his decision. Likewise, the assistant could not credibly give a goal line decision or an
offside without being in line with play. The end result was an increase in the amount of dissent
towards the referee and assistant – proving how proximity and the right angle on an incident can be
critical in getting the decision right and maintaining match control.
RA-FA EVENT, 30 OCTOBER
Although numbers were down, and there was an enforced change of keynote speaker, those 100+
who did attend enjoyed an inspiring presentation by the Hampshire FA Referee Youth Council
members, including a lively audience participation session based on Level One referees in action, and
this was followed by an excellent presentation entitled ‘Only man available’ by the keynote speaker,
Roger East.
Roger has been a popular choice as a speaker at RA meetings this season and last, and again here
shared some sound advice with audience members and gave a lot of food for thought to referees at
all levels.
It was pleasing to see a number of our tutors in attendance.
A REMINDER RE PREPARATION AND LESSON PLANS
As mentioned in the last newsletter, there is a need to prepare a lesson plan in advance of every
session, and to take it with you on the day. Whilst some of the more experienced tutors can present
basic course sessions with few or no notes to hand, you may be called upon to provide a copy of your
lesson plan to an appraiser on the day, and several appraisals this season will be conducted without
prior notice, to comply with the continuing improvement ethos in tutoring.
We had a situation recently where a tutor was unable to attend a basic course day, leaving those who
covered the absence with no prior warning and no prepared lesson plans.
You have time to prepare lesson plans – please ensure that you take a copy with you in case
an appraiser wishes to have a copy for use in preparing the appraisal.
DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING UPDATE
Level 2 tutors have been allocated to each of the RA branches which requested guest presenters, and
early indications are that the content of the presentations has been well received.
Early in 2015 Brian Le Breton will be sending out details of three Referee Evenings within the county,
which are open to all levels of referee but especially useful for those in levels 9 to 4. Level 2 tutors
will be presenting these sessions in tandem, and the programme will be discussed shortly so we can
finalise who is going to do what.
Basic courses have been held in most areas in the close season or early in this season, with good
numbers at most – indeed, Portsmouth attracted so many that Andy and Gareth arranged two
courses to run concurrently, one on Wednesdays and Saturdays, one on Wednesdays and Sundays,
with a total of 47 completing the course, of whom 46 passed the exam and are now trying to
complete their six games – a nice headache for the Appointments Secretaries to fit them all in, and a
headache for the Mentor Coordinator.
In October and November we have completed a further three Club Assistant Referees’ Evenings, for
Crofton Saints, a youth football club based in Stubbington, Fleet Town, for their youth and female
teams, and Loddon Sports, a youth football club based in Basingstoke area. We have now completed
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five of these evenings where we have trained some 80 club assistants in the basics of laws which
they need to know to do their job properly.
These sessions always bear fruit in producing potential referees as well as improving the knowledge
and skills of the club assistants, and are available to any league, club, or local collection of clubs able
to provide a suitable venue.
If you have any interested clubs or groups in your area, please contact Andy Moisey to
arrange the workshop.
Another excerpt from the series “You are the Ref” to make you think . . .
The answers according to Keith Hackett (a former top referee) appear later in this newsletter. With
the foam spray about to make its debut in the Championship and Football League, how long before
local leagues are seeking sponsors for vanishing foam?
IT’S THE LAW!
I became involved in an interesting debate with another tutor (a Surrey man) recently. We were
discussing the situation where a team scores a goal after five minutes of the second half, and the
defending team then point out to you that the team which scored has 12 players on the field of play.
What happens next?
I would love to hear from any reader – there may be conflicting views, based on the 2014-2015 Laws
of the Game!
TUTOR APPRAISALS.
The tutor appraisal programme is on track with the need to complete the current series by the end of
the season.
One or two tutors have not attained the criteria required by FA Learning, but all others will be
appraised at least once this season, the Level One tutors at basic courses and the Level Two tutors at
training and developmental events.
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As a special treat for our loyal readers, a crossword to while away a wet evening . . .
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
24
25
26
8
9
10
11
13
14
15
17
19
12
20
21
16
18
22
23
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
CLUES ACROSS
1 and 4 Youngest Select Group referee (6, 6)
9 Chelsea striker
10 Select Group, pal
11 - - - Etonians, 1882 Cup winners
13 Country of Obafemi Martins and Jay-Jay Okocha
15 That’s just not true . . .
17 Island best known for its Triangle . . . and former West Ham player Clyde Best
21 A Bowie song . . . and the best player in the team (4, 3)
27 Shakhtar are based here . . . but unable to play because of the war situation
28 Sepp
29 “Once - - - eligible players . . .” (Kicks from the penalty mark)
31 Vectis - - - - - - are in Division One of the Isle of Wight Saturday League
32 “A - - - - - - left foot” . . . and the Hand of God
33 Hibs play their home games at - - - - - - Road
34 KSV Hessen - - - - - - are now a non-league team in Germany
CLUES DOWN
1 Used to be known as The Biscuitmen, now more usually The Royals
2 Stevenage . . . or Eastbourne . . . or Harrow . . .
3 A vegetable used as a fruit . . . or as a term indicating contempt and disagreement!
5 Friedel, Guzan and Howard all feel at home here
6 The country sadly racked by Ebola; its most famous player was George Weah
7 Hayes and - - - - - - - United FC, Conference South club
8 Best known as the referee for whom three yellows became a red for Simunic
11 Tommy - - - is an Australian international who plays in the Netherlands for Utrecht
12 Directions for Use
14 English exams taken by students wishing to study in England . . . and some footballers
16 - - - - - Sports Management, a licensed football agency
18 Minimum Angle of Resolution (part of the FIFA eyesight test for match officials)
19 Serie A team, the second oldest club in Italian football
20 What Sir Alf Ramsey called the Argentinians in 1966
21 - - - - - - - France (5,2)
22 Also known as
23 Master of Business Leadership
24 The “Brave Warriors”, a national team from S.W. Africa
25 Stevenage Borough nickname
26 Jim Stokes’s second favourite North London team?
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30 “Howay the - - - - “is sung in the North East
(Answers later in the newsletter)
Keith Hackett's verdict on the “You are the Ref” strip
1) Game over. You decided it was full time, and signalled that when you started blowing the whistle.
So disallow the goal. But, of course, you really should have waited for the outcome of the header, to
avoid this sort of controversy: best advice is never to blow for full time if the ball is in the penalty
area. Thanks to Philip Talbot.
2) a) From the moment you enter the field of play; b) After the full-time whistle to any player who is
still on the field of play. In between those times you can caution or dismiss a player at any point,
including during the half-time interval. If a player is guilty of misconduct outside that period, you can
report him but there's no need to start brandishing cards on buses. It happened to me once: I had
been running a grassroots game and was threatened on the bus home. I reported the player involved
to the FA and he was fined and banned. Phil Roberts wins the shirt.
3) Tell him to calm down and award the goal. Footballs are often slippery, whether it's due to mud or
rain, and keepers need to be ready for that. If there is foam on the ball, so be it. But maybe you
should have a think at the next free-kick whether you're using too much...
Thanks to Bill Thompson.
MARACANA MEMORIES
Not memories of this year’s World Cup, but some reminiscences of the 1950 World Cup in Brazil from
Arthur Ellis, a top English referee from that era, in his book “Refereeing round the world”. He was in
an official party going to the new Maracana stadium to watch Brazil v Mexico, which was to be
refereed by another Englishman, George Reader.
The traffic and organisational chaos meant that the official party’s transport was so heavily delayed
that the police escort could not get them near the stadium in time, so they got out and walked . . .
and en route met the England team on their way to the game, also on foot! How times have
changed.
Arthur Ellis returned to Brazil in 1951, this time with Portsmouth F.C., who had been invited to tour
there and had agreed as long as they could take an English referee with them!
IT’S THE LAW . . . some further thoughts . . .
For those who found the “It’s the law” question in this newsletter too easy, here are some further
aspects of it to consider:
a) The team which conceded the goal claim that the other team have had 12 players throughout the
game; or
b) The team which conceded the goal had a player sent off in the move which led to the goal, and
claim the red card should be cancelled and the second half restarted; or
c) As the players are wearing squad numbers, who decides who leaves the field and who may need
to be cautioned?
In the words of the meerkats – “Simples, huh?”
CROSSWORD SOLUTION
Across. 1 Robert 4 Madley 9 Drogba 10 Friend 11 Old 13 Nigeria 15 Fiction 17 Bermuda
21 Star man 27 Donetsk 28 Blatter 29 All 31 Nomads 32 Divine 33 Easter 34 Kassel
Down. 1 Reading 2 Borough 3 Rhubarb 5 America 6 Liberia 7 Yeading 8 Poll 11 Oar
9
12 DFU 14 IELTS 16 Ideal 18 Mar 19 Udinese 20 Animals 21 Stade de 22 AKA 23 MBL
24 Namibia 25 Stripes 26 Arsenal 30 Lads
CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR GREETINGS
As this is the last Tutor Newsletter of the year 2014, best wishes to you and your families for an
enjoyable Christmas break (if you get one!) and a prosperous and happy 2015.
Hon. Editor: Chas Morrison, 01329 665947
[email protected]
Views in this newsletter are those of the contributor, and not necessarily those of Hampshire FA.