Old | refs

In 2021, SCCSA will begin to introduce electronic registrations, team sheets and reporting. We will start with a trial run in Senior football and then, hopefully, it will be extended to all SCCSA matches from under 9 up. In its initial year, we will be using the ordinary pen and paper mode as well (i.e. we will be duplicating everything). We will give you more detail as it comes to hand and will tell you as much as we can in our indoor training sessions.

Our 2020 AGM and 2021 Referee Sign On Day will be held at Mudjimba at 2pm on 30th January, 2021. Please make sure that you come along and get registered for the year ahead

The SCCSA season officially starts on 6th March, however the will possibly be a few trials games etc prior to that. At this stage some trial seniors games are planned for Friday 12th February

Referee registration fee will be advised shortly, but you can expect that it will be about the same as last year.

Referee training nights in 2021 will be on THURSDAY evenings (both indoor and outdoor). Please note this change from previous years. Venues will probably be the same as last year (indoor at NCC in Nambour and outdoor at Mudjimba), however there is a possibility that Thursday night OUTDOOR training venue may be changed. Again, we’ll let you know of any changes in plenty of time. The first training session will be on Thursday 4th February and it will an INDOOR session at NCC.

We hope to be able to give you some info on State and National Titles shortly. At this stage, State Titles are scheduled for Sunshine Coast on 1st May with National Titles due at the end of season – the venue for National Titles has yet to be decided.

If you know anyone who wants to do the referee course, please advise them to email me as soon as possible. The ONLY course that we will run in 2021, will be held on 6th and 7th February and we will have limited numbers.

If you ordered a comms set late last year and have not yet contacted Brian, please contact him asap to arrange collection. If you have changed your mind, that’s OK, but please let Brian know so he can sell them to someone else.

Also about comms sets ….. We recommend that you get your OWN head set (the ear piece and mic that plug into the comms unit). For obvious health reasons, it is better that you have you own. You can buy a head set and armband for $20 from Brian.

September 2017

Arriving at Matches

When you arrive for your match (whether as a referee or an AR) please make sure that you go to the referee area (whether that's a referees' room, a tent or just the area where referees leave their gear) and check in with your fellow referees. Failure to do this make make people think that you are not at the ground, and arrangements may be made for someone else to cover your games. It is especially important at venues where there are several fields operating (e.g. Mudjimba, Bli Bli, Caloundra etc)

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The 5 Q Quiz

OK, here we go with the LOTG quiz. Remember, some questions may be “hypothetical”, many are taken from match experiences and some have happened on a field near you!

1. A match has been extended for the taking of a penalty kick. The kicker takes the penalty and the goalkeeper is able to get to the ball with his hands, but the ball bounces from the goalkeeper's hands onto the crossbar and into the goal. Given that the game was extended for the taking of the penalty, should the referee rule that the game is over as soon as the goalkeeper touched the ball or should the goal be awarded?

2. The second last defender of the red team is lying on the ground injured and an attacker from the blue team receives the ball from his team-mate. The attacker receiving the ball is closer to the goal line than the third-last defender but not the second-last, who is still lying on the ground, clearly unable to be involved in the game. Should the attacker be ruled to be off-side because the defender on the ground is not involved in the game?

3. Following a foul committed by a defender, the attacking team is awarded a penalty kick and the attacker involved in the incident leaves the field to receive attention to an injury caused by the foul. An attacker steps up to take the penalty kick and the referee blows the whistle signaling for the PK to be taken. Before the ball is kicked, the attacker who was injured in the penalty incident, strikes an opponent who is sitting on the defending team’s bench. The PK is then taken, but the goalkeeper catches the ball to stop the goal. Given that an offense occurred during this time, what should the referee do?

4. An attacker is standing on the penalty spot in an offside position, the ball comes to him and he is correctly penalized for being offside. A defender takes the kick, attempting to kick it back to the goalkeeper, but kicks too hard and the ball goes into the goal. Would you award a goal and how would you re-start play?

5. On a wet, muddy field an attacker has only the GK to beat—and the GK has come out to the middle of the Penalty Area to meet the attacker. The attacker shoots. The GK, who had been adjusting his shin-pads and was still holding one shin-pad in his hand, realizes that he can’t get to the ball so he reaches out at full stretch and stops the ball right on the goal line with his shin-pad. He then recovers and grabs the ball. What action (if any) should the referee take?

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The Finals

With finals just around the corner, it’s wise to note the procedures to be followed by referees in all finals matches.

If scores are level at the end of normal time, extra time will need to be played.

Referees should allow a 5 minute break and then call the captains together and toss a coin, the winner deciding which way their team will run in the first period of extra time, the loser kicking off. After the first period of extra time, teams change ends and the kick off for the second period of extra time should take place immediately. There is NO "half-time" break in this extra time period. Extra time periods are 15 minutes in seniors and 10 minutes in juniors and women’s matches.

Any of the players nominated on the team sheet may be nominated to play the period of extra time, except any player who have been sent from the field by the referee (red card).

Normal interchange is allowed during the extra time periods.

If the scores are level at the end of extra time, the result will be determined by shots from the penalty mark as per the LOTG

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The Fourth Offical

During grand finals, we appoint a 4th official to each match.

The 4th official is not just appointed to make up numbers, he/she has an important job to do.

First of all, the 4th official needs to keep an accurate record of the game—some referees will give the team sheets to the 4th official to record scorers, cautions etc. In the infamous “3 yellows cards” incident in the World Cup a few years ago, the 4th official should have recorded the cautions and informed the referee that he had just given a player a second yellow card.

Most referees will ask the 4th official to manage substitutions (interchange)—this means checking players equipment before they come on as a sub (if required) and ensuring that substitutions are made according to the LOTG. The 4th official is also

responsible for managing the bench and technical area—this involves ensuring that only substitutes and team Officials (2 only) are in the technical area and that they conduct themselves appropriately (e.g. they don’t clash with their opponents’ bench or show dissent from the referee’s decisions etc). In the event that a referee or AR is injured during a match, the 4th official would replace the referee or the AR (referee appointments will note who would replace the referee). The referee may ask the 4th official to assist in other ways as well—for example, reporting to the referee any incidents that the ref and AR both missed.

The 4th official does not usually use a flag, however it is common for the 4th official to use a flag to indicate Substitutions. The 4th official should NOT however, “wave” the flag to catch the referee’s attention to signal any other issue – if there’s an issue, the 4th official should advise the near side AR to call the referee in the normal way.

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Soccer – Where the Name Comes From

The word “soccer” is derived from an abbreviation of association (ie Association Football– the real name of the sport). In 1890 it was spelt variously as socca and socker. It is said that upper class sportsman had a fad of adding 'er' to everything. Rugby became rugger and socca became soccer.

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Quiz Answers

1. This has been a contentious question in years past, however the law now makes it clear that a goal should be awarded if the ball enters the goal having first touched the goalkeeper and/or the goal posts or crossbar. The game is over when the momentum of the ball from the PK taker ceases i.e. when the ball goes out of play, stops moving or is touched by a player other than the GK. So in this question’s scenario, it’s a goal!

2. The Law does not discriminate between players on their feet and those on the ground. The defender lying on the ground would count as one of the opposing players in the offside situation described in the question. If the player who received the pass was not beyond the second-last opponent, regardless of whether that defender is involved in the game or not, then he/she was not offside.

3. Although the referee has signaled for the kick to be taken, the ball had not been kicked and moved forward when the

offense occurred. This means that the ball was not in play. The referee should therefore stop play and dismiss the offending player and treat the kick as if it had not occurred. The correct re-start will be to take the original penalty (i.e. it is not a “re-take” of a PK already taken).

4. I certainly hope that you wouldn’t award a goal—a team can’t score a goal against itself directly from an indirect free kick. Whilst a lot of people may re-start with a corner kick, they too would be wrong. The ball has not left the penalty area and is thus not come into into play. The correct re-start is to re-take the free kick.

5. Certainly if any defender other than the goalkeeper does this, it would be red card (for DOGSO) and penalty (for hand ball). However, the GK is allowed to handle the ball and thus cannot be penalized for handling the ball. He/she has however, engaged in unsporting conduct, so the referee should stop play, caution the goalkeeper (yellow card) and re-start with an indirect FK to the attack on the 6 goal area line—but what is the fate of the goalkeeper? The LOTG lists among the send off offenses: “denying the opposing team a goal or an obvious goal scoring opportunity by deliberately handling the ball (this does not apply to a goalkeeper within his own penalty area)”. Clearly we are talking about a goalkeeper so this clause doesn’t apply. The LOTG also lists as a send off offense “denying an obvious goal scoring opportunity to an opponent moving towards the player’s goal by an offense punishable by a free kick or a penalty kick”. The GK is guilty of unsporting conduct and play is stopped to punish this offense. Some argue that the GK should be sent off under this clause because you have stopped play for an offense that is punishable by a free kick, however it’s when this exact scenario happened a few years ago, FFA ruled that the referee was correct to issue a caution (yellow card) to the GK and NOT a red card because the actual incident involved an "illegal" "hand-ball" by the goalkeeper for which he/she cannot be sent off!

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One of the great things about Football is that it can be played almost anywhere in the world...... I did say ALMOST!!!!

I'd like to know who checked the field markings on this pitch!!!

July 2017

Welcome to our first Newsletter, the name of which ("in referendarius") is Latin for "The Referee".

Each month we'll aim to produce a newsletter containing news, information, some coaching tips, a Law quiz and a few other odd bits and pieces. It will remain an online newsletter, with older editions archived for easy access. If you have some ideas or questions you'd like to see addressed, please email me at the referees' email address which is <screfs@optusnet.com.au> .... and by the way, that is the ONLY email address that should be used for all refereeing matters.

When a player is sent off

Despite what some people seem to think, we know that referees really don't like sending off players - first because it can ruin a good game and second because there's paperwork that has to be done. However, we know that sometimes there is no option - there are mandatory red cards (like a DOGSO offense) and there are actions and behaviour of players that sometimes leave the referee with no choice and out comes the dreaded red card.

So the out comes the red card and off goes the player. But as I noted above, the referee now MUST complete the appropriate paperwork. In our Association, the send off report MUST be received within 48 hours of the match, so you have until Sunday for a Friday night game and Monday for a Saturday game (you can work out the mid week ones!). The first thing that you do is to download the correct form and that's pretty easy - they are on our website (https://www.churchesrefs.website/forms), then fill in the match details (teams involved, date, place and time along with the age group and division) and then you note the Red Card code (R1 etc) and what the code stands for (e.g. violent conduct). Next comes the details - when, where, who, why (i.e. what caused it). In all of these, simple short answers to the question on the form is all that's needed. In answer to the "What happened" question, you need to be brief but precise - all we want here are FACTS, no opinions or stories about what you were thinking at the time. All you need to say is something like "Number 7 for Peregian beach, Joe Smith, was tackled fairly by an opponent and immediately grabbed hold of the opponent by the shirt and punched him in the face. I stopped play and showed Joe Smith the red card and sent him from the field. Play resumed with a direct free kick to the Bells Creek team". If the player used OFFINABUS type language in the incident, write down the EXACT words that were said. Please do NOT add your own comments or opinions, just write down the details of the incident. You then need to note whether the player left the field or if he/she committed a further offense by swearing at you, or threatening an opponent etc. Again, just write down the details without comments. When you've completed the form, type your name and date at the bottom of the page and email the form to <screfs@optusnet.com.au> . That's it - easy. The best time to write your report is as soon as you get home, that way you are sure to get it completed and lodged well within the 48 hours. If you send in a report AFTER the 48 hour period, it may mean that the offending player will not face any disciplinary action AND it WILL mean that our Association looks bad. Report writing is part of the job that you are paid to do, so let's make sure that it's done on time and properly!

THE QUIZ

Each month we'll give you the chance to try your hand at a few simple questions. Here's some for you to try now, the answers are at the bottom of the page (but don't cheat, think through before checking your answers)

1. A player from team A taking a throw in, clearly lifts one foot from the ground whilst throwing the ball, however the ball is mistakenly thrown to the feet of an opponent (team B) who quickly passes the ball to a team mate in possible goal scoring position. Should the referee recall the ball and have the throw re-taken by team B or should the situation be seen as an advantage to the non offending team and play allowed to continue.

2. The goalkeeper with ball in hand stands with feet on the penalty area line (18 yard line). The referee takes no action as he considers it to be the same as a throw in (i.e. if part of his/her foot is in contact with the line it’s OK). Is the referee correct?

3.What action should the Referee take, if the ball hits the halfway flagpost, and rebounds back towards the centre circle?

4. OK, now for all the lateral thinkers and law experts, this one's for you. Is it possible during a game, for a player taking a throw-in, to legally touch the ball again, after he has legally thrown it into play, but before it has been touched by another player?

Some Football Trivia - THE “TOUCH” LINE

Here’s a little football trivia for you. Why do we call the line that marks the side of the field the “touch line”? The term "touch" in describing the area surrounding the actual field is an old one in football. It goes back to the nineteenth century, when the first player getting to the ball after it left the bounds of the field could "touch" it and the ball became his to put back into play. Although that no longer applies and there are strict rules about who puts the ball back into play, depending on who last touched, played, or made contact with the ball before it left the field, the term "touch" is still used to describe the area outside the "touch lines."

Coolum Crusaders Soccer Club

The Coolum are holding a soccer camp on 26-30th June and on the last day (Friday 30th) they are having some "World Cup" games. The camp is only for primary aged children up to under U12. If you would like to referee some games on the day, please let me know at the referees email address (screfs@optusnet.com.au). Referee will be paid a match fee.

RULES ON BEING LATE FOR A MATCH - some notes from Alan Schloss, Referees' President

I had an incident with a referee who was late on Saturday. He claims he had no idea what he was meant to do after arriving late, so he waited in the referees rooms until half time before advising that he was available to take over his duties.

I told him he should have gone over to the assistant referee who was standing in his place and asked him if he could take over the game and then it would be up to that assistant referee to decide whether to hand over the flag and duties to him or continue with the game. It would also depend on the time that the late AR arrives and whether or not the stand in AR has other duties and wants to leave. If the stand in AR is not an official referee then this scheduled AR should assume responsibility at any stage.

RULE 1 : Don't be late. (arrive at least half an hour before your match starts)
RULE 2 : Refer to rule number one (only when this is not possible, move onto rule number 3)

RULE 3 : Advise the match official by phone call not text that you are going to be late and then by text if you are unable to make contact via voice call. (phone contact list is on the website if you don't have the number available -

https://www.churchesrefs.website/phone)

RULE4 : When you arrive go straight to the fill in AR thank them and ask if you may take over your Duty (this should be in the AR2 position but not always). If it is an official referee, they may decide to continue with the match. I would suggest a bit less than 10 minutes into the first half then the fill-in referee should always allow the scheduled referee to take over, after that time the fill in AR can choose to finish the match if they wish.

Challenge Cup

This year's Challenge Cup will be held at Mudjimba on 8th July. The Challenge Cup is based on the Fair Play Award which is for the team that demonstrates a positive spirit and attitude, shows respect to all officials and has the best side line support.

With games on 4 field all day from under 10's to 16's, it will be a great day of football. Please let us know if you are NOT available to referee on this day.

As the winner of this tournament is based on the Fair Play points award it is essential that all referees make sure that they take due care when making their assessment. Therefore all 3 REFEREES are to quickly get together at the end of the game and advise of any reasons why points should be deducted or awarded. Eg. ARs have a better chance of hearing the coach and spectators actions and sometimes the way the players are speaking to each other. We do not want to see some referees just writing down 5’s because they haven’t bothered to think about, that would make a very unfair competition. Remember to keep games on time. Be firm with your whistle so that teams are ready at kickoff time.

Points are allocated as follows:

Best Team Spirit 5 Encouragement to all players by players eg. Shaking hands, cheers to opposing team at end of game.

4 ½ way between 3 and 5

3 Encouragement to own team players

2 ½ way between 1 and 3

1 Negative comments from players

Best Coaching Spirit 5 Encouragement to all players from both teams sideline

4 ½ way between 3 and 5

3 Encouragement to own team players from sideline

2 ½ way between 1 and 3

1 Negative comments from the sideline

Best Attitude to Referee 5 Thanking referee and not questioning decisions

4 ½ way between 3 and 5

3 Not questioning decisions

2 ½ way between 1 and 3

1 Negative comments directed at referee

Time for these matches are:

U10, U13,– 15 minutes each way, 5 min ½ time

U11, U12 Games– 20 minutes each way, 5 min ½ time

U14, U16 Games – 30 minutes each way, 5 min ½ time

ANSWERS TO THE RULES QUIZ

1. Play must be stopped and the throw retaken by team B. Until the throw in has been taken in accordance with the laws of the game, the ball cannot be regarded as being in play. The “advantage clause” (found in Law 5) refers to situations where “the team against which an offense has been committed will benefit from such an advantage….” As this is a technical offense rather than an offense against the opposing team, this clause does not apply.

2. The goalkeeper's kick is nothing like the throw-in because the ball is in play. Think position of the ball and nothing else! It's all about where the ball is, not where the goalkeeper is. If the ball is in the goalkeeper's hand outside of the penalty area, it is a hand ball regardless of where the goalkeeper's feet happen to be. As a general rule, if the goalkeeper's feet are on the penalty area line, then the ball in his hands is very likely to be over the line!

3 Throw in. The half way flag must be at least 1 metre from the side line so the ball must has gone out of play before hitting the flag post.

4. Of course it's an unlikely (and almost impossible) scenario BUT.....Player (A) takes the throw-in, and after the ball has entered the field of play (and before it has been touched by another player) it bursts or is interfered with by an outside agent (for example a dog). The Referee stops play, replaces the ball, and awards a dropped ball to restart play. Player (A) wins the ball, thus touching it before it has been touched by another player. Alternative Answer: Player (A) takes a throw-in. The ball enters the field of play and is directly blown out again by the wind. The Referee blows his whistle to indicate the end of the first half. Player (A) takes the kick off at the start of the second half, thus touching the ball a second time following a throw-in and before it has touched another player!

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