The standard of refereeing in League 1

[UppaTowen_ITFC]

How can it be so bad?

When we first got relegated four years ago we were warned about the standard of football being massively inconsistent but that the main thing we’d notice is the refereeing. And my word were they right.

How can it go from an already weak standard at championship level to its current standard in league 1 that is absolutely atrocious. All 24 clubs should join together to put a complaint in about the current standard as it is quite frankly disgraceful. Just this week we had this not given as a penalty:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1560993512971182081

https://twitter.com/x/status/1560998877775286273

It feels like the standard gets worse and worse and surely at some point something needs to be done by the EFL.

 

[masi51]

when you think about it the referees we get in league 1 are/supposed to be roughly the top 30/40 Referees in the country.
The standard is shocking especially seeing they are miked up to 3 other officials.
The pic above states how is this not a penalty, i would state how is that not a straight red as both feet are clearly off the ground

 

[Super_horns]

How can it be so bad?

When we first got relegated four years ago we were warned about the standard of football being massively inconsistent but that the main thing we’d notice is the refereeing. And my word were they right.

How can it go from an already weak standard at championship level to its current standard in league 1 that is absolutely atrocious. All 24 clubs should join together to put a complaint in about the current standard as it is quite frankly disgraceful. Just this week we had this not given as a penalty:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1560993512971182081

https://twitter.com/x/status/1560998877775286273

It feels like the standard gets worse and worse and surely at some point something needs to be done by the EFL.

I think the commentators sum up the problem - because the decision went for them they think it was the right one so won't complain.

Gone against Shrewsbury and they would have up in arms!

Teams, players etc will generally only moan if the decisions go against them so it all sounds a bit like sour grapes at times (I know in this case you won and clearly is should have been a penalty)

If a team win 1-0 in the 90th minutes via a dodgy penalty they aren't going to care - just say well it's our turn to get a decision this week etc.

 

[Si Robin]

It starts at grassroots - the best in the country are where they are because there simply aren't enough referees at grassroots. And why aren't there enough referees at grassroots level? It's because when you're threatened with a smack in the mouth for daring to make a mistake, are you going to continue getting up early on a freezing cold Saturday or Sunday morning for £30 to run around and be abused by all and sundry?

I'm not saying this is the only reason by the way.

There's also the fact that mistakes are magnified by such an extent after every game these days, even at lower league levels. Look at the past couple of weeks on here when there was talk of the Bolton shot getting over the line against Port Vale, etc... We had numerous posts from different angles and stills of where the ball should have been and people were still arguing left was right. The ref and his linesman had a split second to make that decision (which they got right by the way) and they were still no doubt pilloried by a section of supporters. The managers at the top don't help either - Thomas Tuchel has been charged twice in two games for comments about officials.

There seems to be this need these days that officials need to be perfect, people forget they're human and they make mistakes. Until I saw the highlights I would have sworn to my dying day that Ryan Jackson made no contact with the Pompey player for their penalty against us last week - I was wrong.

Refs aren't great at this level, and they're not going to get any better until society starts realising that they need a bit of slack.

 

[Greenacres]

Just to add a bit of balance, the ref we had for the Carabao Cup game against Orient was dreadful, he showed yellow cards to the players from both teams (defenders) who put in their first tackle...that was in the first five minutes. You then had two defenders who couldn't risk putting in a decent challenge and that set the tone for the evening, Bernard later made a tackle that was probably much worse than the one he saw yellow for but fortunately got away with it. Contrast that with the ref for our Carabao Cup game last night who was pretty invisible for the first hour, tried his best to keep the game flowing (which it did), and didn't reach for his pocket until around the hour mark...which was definitely a fair yellow card.

Totally agree with the Si Robin post above, there really is a problem at a lower level and while that exists there will be fewer people willing to referee and it will be the game that suffers. We seem to be in a bit of a boom time for interest in football, not least because of the England Women winning the Euro's, it would be a pity if the advantage is lost because there aren't enough people willing to officiate at games.

 

[K-Win]

I doubt the standard is much worse than it used to be. It's just that nowadays every game is televised and there are loads of camera phones meaning that every bad decision can be quickly scrutinised and howled about.

You just need to accept that the refs aren't biased against your club, these things generally balance out over the season, blow off a bit of steam and then move on. Rest assured, every team gets denied nailed-on penalties.

The kind of nonsense that's going on where certain refs are singled out by individuals (Tuchel at Chelsea anyone?) is dangerous considering some of the obsessed nutters that follow clubs.

Anyone who's reffed or run the line at kids level sees this attitude most weeks. Parents at a Div 4 under 12s game who rant at the unfortunate dad who's volunteered to pick the flag up seem to think they're in the stands at a Premier League game. Incidentally, these are the same parents who generally fall silent when looking for a volunteer.

 

[Boletus Edulis]

It is a long time since I hung up my whistle and put away my flag, and it was not at this level though I did know and “went out” (ie officiated with) quite a few who did.

The comments above about park football have been true for a long time, and act as a barrier to getting people involved.

The refs are human and just like our star striker who misses a sitter from two yards, they do make mistakes. However, my view is they tend to get most decisions right. I often watch a game the next day and realise what I thought from my position was a foul, was not. Last Saturday at FRG from my vantage point I was convinced we had a clear pen with a few minutes to go. The recording showed I was wrong.

So I do not think the issue is their decision making, rather it it is their game management. I think their are 3 factors which influence their control.

First, the existence of VAR has hollowed out the number available. This has led to the second, whereby there are refs who are promoted too soon. It used to take a lot longer to get the pros, many of them now simply have not had enough games to get the experience to handle players, managers and situations. Third, the FA counties now control most of the qualification of new Refs. This has led to the demise of the various local Referees Association, which acted like a university. New refs could meet, learn from and run the line with experienced refs.

Being at FGR last week where I was so close to the pitch at player level brought home to me what it was like running the line at the Maidstone’s, Welling’s and Crockehhill’s. It was bloody fast and furious with a split second to make a decision. Sitting half way up a stand or watching on TV with endless replays it’s not the same.

I am not saying the refs are perfect, and there are some pretty poor ones, but I think the issue is not whether something is a foul or not, it is more how they manage the game, that is where the issues lie.

The other thing to note is that the ref is part of a team, and our views of his or her performance are shaped by his or hers linos and the fourth official. And here I think the standard of the linos is not good with two key issues. First, they are often not in the right place to make a decision (many simply do not seem fast enough or they do not get themselves in a good position). Second, too often there are linos who do not seem to actually help the ref when they are in a better decision making position.

 

[Si Robin]

Anyone who's reffed or run the line at kids level sees this attitude most weeks. Parents at a Div 4 under 12s game who rant at the unfortunate dad who's volunteered to pick the flag up seem to think they're in the stands at a Premier League game. Incidentally, these are the same parents who generally fall silent when looking for a volunteer.

Funnily enough, I coach my son's u12 team and your bang on when I'm looking for a volunteer. We have one or two who step forward every week, but if they're not there I really struggle. And I get it, I used to run the line for my older son's team and I used to get loads of grief.

One time my son's team were defending a corner, the ball came over, was hit towards goal and my son cleared it before it even reached the goal line. The other team were adamant it crossed, the ref looked over to me and I stated that it didn't even reach the line, let alone cross it. My son was stood on the line. The ball was eventually cleared and play moved up to the other end of the pitch. As I always stayed in line with the last defender I slowly made my way up to the half way line where a parent from the other team started - "That was over the line", Me, "No it wasn't mate, it didn't even reach the line." Him, "You're a cheat, it was clearly over the line". Me, "Honestly it wasn't.", "It bloody was, definitely over".

By now I'm getting irritated, but I don't do confrontation so I turn to him calmly, "Can I ask where you were stood when the shot was taken?" Him, "I was stood here." Me, "Ok then, who had the better view? Me, who was stood looking along the goal line, or you, stood all the way back here on the halfway line?"........Him, "Do you want to borrow my glasses mate?"

At this point, the ref can see it's going on and has stopped the game, but also one of our parents does as well (a big lad who loves any excuse for a scrap) and makes his way over, "Is everything Ok Si?". Said opposition parent suddenly falls silent and slopes off behind another group of parents.

FWIW, my son's team were 3-0 up and we'd just reached injury time or so, so a goal wouldn't have made much difference. But these idiots think they can say whatever they want. We get a lot of young refs, and their parents have to come along in case it gets rough for them. Whilst I've moaned at the odd decision, I like to think I've never lost it with a ref, and I make a point of thanking them after a game and apologising if I was out of order at any point. I will also thank their parent and tell them they did a great job, even if I think they've not done brilliantly. These kids need encouragement, and after reffing my u12s a few times last season, I'm definitely not interested in taking it up full-time.

 

[Floreat Salopia]

Like K-Win mentions, the standard of officiating is no worse than it was say 10/20/30 years ago. The difference nowadays is referees get scrutinised for a poor decision much more frequently due to cameras covering all angles of every blade of grass.

Speaking of referees, I recommend watching Kevin Lynch (ex FL ref) podcast with Undr The Cosh. I must’ve laugh out aloud atleast ten times during it!

 

[valefan16]

VAR is a main factor as it meant the top flight took more of the top EFL referee's and thus referee's that usually would be lower down the pyramid had to push up the scale.

63 Games without a penalty though is a bit frustrating from our POV mind (1 in the last 91 games going further back)

Only bonus was Swindon's keeper probably had little idea where our penalties would go in the shoot out as we hadn't taken one for so long in the POSF.

 

[denzel ecfc]

Whilst I take Si Robin's point, it doesn't excuse an experienced ref of 15 plus years in the football league failing in his duty of stamping out cynical time wasting and cheating in the game last Saturday....

 

[BarrieOwl]

Like K-Win mentions, the standard of officiating is no worse than it was say 10/20/30 years ago. The difference nowadays is referees get scrutinised for a poor decision much more frequently due to cameras covering all angles of every blade of grass.

Speaking of referees, I can’t recommend watching Kevin Lynch (ex FL ref) podcast with Undr The Cosh. I must’ve laugh out aloud atleast ten times during it!

He's a good un

 

[BRFC_Gas]

Ive never seen so many decisions go against us since Barton came in. Now im not saying that Barton is the reason we are getting these bad decisions..... ...Actually, thats exactly what im saying.

Gavin Ward has to be right up there as the worst, im surprised he didnt take Portsmouth's penalty for them last weekend.

 

[Si Robin]

Whilst I take Si Robin's point, it doesn't excuse an experienced ref of 15 plus years in the football league failing in his duty of stamping out cynical time wasting and cheating in the game last Saturday....

Exeter have never, ever time-wasted. Ever!!!

I must admit, hearing John Beer's seething on the MyNewFootballClub pod was genuinely hilarious.

I don't like timewasting, I pointed that out after the game, but I've genuinely never heard someone so devastated about it. I almost only want to stay up to piss him off.

 

[Luke Imp]

The ref we had against FGR was outstanding (bar booking our Bishop for a foul, which was very similar to one the FGR player didn't get booked for, for a foul on him), but I agree that generally the standard is poor. It's never good for the rest of us when even the PL refs are starting to look under-par.

 

[denzel ecfc]

Exeter have never, ever time-wasted. Ever!!!

I must admit, hearing John Beer's seething on the MyNewFootballClub pod was genuinely hilarious.

I don't like timewasting, I pointed that out after the game, but I've genuinely never heard someone so devastated about it. I almost only want to stay up to piss him off.

It was the worst I have ever seen. And we have played Wycombe, Lincoln and Westley's Stevenage enough times.

 

[Si Robin]

I remember the Barnet keeper getting booked in the 40th minute for timewasting against us once - that was undoubtedly the worst I've ever seen.

It's genuinely surprising to hear it said about us. Obviously we've done it in the last 10 mins of games for as long back as I can remember, but I don't recall us ever being so bad as to cause a fan to have a meltdown on a podcast over it.

Hopefully it was a one-off to avoid a repeat of 11 days before. Had we done it against Peterborough on the opening day, we might have actually kept our 2-0 lead.

 

[denzel ecfc]

I remember the Barnet keeper getting booked in the 40th minute for timewasting against us once - that was undoubtedly the worst I've ever seen.

It's genuinely surprising to hear it said about us. Obviously we've done it in the last 10 mins of games for as long back as I can remember, but I don't recall us ever being so bad as to cause a fan to have a meltdown on a podcast over it.

Hopefully it was a one-off to avoid a repeat of 11 days before. Had we done it against Peterborough on the opening day, we might have actually kept our 2-0 lead.

Your keeper was the worst. Warned three times before getting booked, then doing it twice more afterwards. I don't know why any of them bothered, we were never going to score.

 

[Si Robin]

Have you heard the pod - my favourite bit is when he says teams should just roll over for other teams who play good football

 

[denzel ecfc]

Have you heard the pod - my favourite bit is when he says teams should just roll over for other teams who play good football

Nah, I steer clear of pods, vlogs and all that stuff. Especially after a defeat!

 

[GeneralLee]

I might be going against the majority here, however I genuinely don't get too concerned by refereeing performances all that much. Decisions go against my team, however I don't recall too many (if any decisions) which have cost us points. The end of the season I don't think many (if at all) would look back on our season gone and think 'if only that ref had given x'. I do still think we'd have missed out on the playoffs either way.

Perhaps that's due to where my club is at right now. Despite our awful start, we probably won't get relegated but we will be playoff chasing (at this rate, lower mid-table!). Most results which have gone against OUFC have been due to incompetent defending, midfielders getting caught out of position or simply not having enough in the squad to compete.

Refereeing decisions largely break up the vast majority of games much to most peoples frustrations, even as neutrals it makes it more difficult to watch. That being said on the whole referees haven't really negatively contributed many/if any major decisions in any OUFC games fore or against that I can recall (disallowed goals, big penalty decisions, sendings off) which with a goal in it would have made the difference. At a push I might suggest we should have had a penalty (I think) against Lincoln? However we likely didn't deserve anything from the game and we were so poor I think some supporters may be thinking 'what if'... Until this post, I'd already forgotten about it.

Finally, if you think League One referees are bad... League Two is worse. If you think League Two referees are something else, try the Conference...

 

[kieran_vale]

Outside of one or two individual decisions such as the penalty Exeter got against us and one that wasn’t given to us against Burton I can’t think of anything that was particularly questionable in any of our games. Over the course of the season I do believe it evens out. Last year though we were never awarded a penalty ourselves we got very fortunate with a Mal Benning handball that wasn’t given in the playoff semi.

One that may change my outlook is tomorrows ref against Portsmouth Craig Hicks. He did both of our games against Bristol Rovers last season (which is a problem in itself) and was generally beyond useless for both teams over the course of both games.

 

[valefan16]

Outside of one or two individual decisions such as the penalty Exeter got against us and one that wasn’t given to us against Burton I can’t think of anything that was particularly questionable in any of our games. Over the course of the season I do believe it evens out. Last year though we were never awarded a penalty ourselves we got very fortunate with a Mal Benning handball that wasn’t given in the playoff semi.

One that may change my outlook is tomorrows ref against Portsmouth Craig Hicks. He did both of our games against Bristol Rovers last season (which is a problem in itself) and was generally beyond useless for both teams over the course of both games.

He was an odd one, sent their lads off away (one was straight forward, the other was out of shot), but then let Coutts pretty much boot Woz off the pitch at home and seemed to be evening it up... so guess it did in the end.

I think the bottom two leagues have the same referee anyway to be fair, the fella who did the final, the Australian Premier League Referee was good I thought and shows the gulf in quality in them...

That said it shows how bad things are when probably the best we had aside from him last season was Tricky Trev Kettle!

 

[Greenacres]

Ive never seen so many decisions go against us since Barton came in. Now im not saying that Barton is the reason we are getting these bad decisions..... ...Actually, thats exactly what im saying.

Gavin Ward has to be right up there as the worst, im surprised he didnt take Portsmouth's penalty for them last weekend.

Unfortunately for you Barton is not loved much by anyone who is involved in or follows football...for a variety of reasons...and that seems to be tainting your club. What is that old saying...when the head of the fish is rotten...I suspect the situation may change when he is no longer in charge of the gas.

 

[BarrieOwl]

We've got a ref making his Hillsborough debut tomorrow. They usually turn out to be shit

 

[91SPP]

What can be done, though? You can’t magically make them better. It is pretty bad, with most of them risk adverse so a lot of penalties not being called which I do prefer than lots being called for no reason.

Some teams are definitely more clued up with gamesmanship than others, though. It was evident in the first game against Oxford.

 

[masi51]

What can be done, though? You can’t magically make them better. It is pretty bad, with most of them risk adverse so a lot of penalties not being called which I do prefer than lots being called for no reason.

Some teams are definitely more clued up with gamesmanship than others, though. It was evident in the first game against Oxford.

You have hit the nail on the head. As i have stated previously these are supposed to be in the top 30/50 Referees in the country but the shithouse tactics employed by many teams in the lower leagues is bad and getting worse.
We all know which teams/managers use them. It is a tactic used by teams who just cannot compete financially so it is a tool to even things up

 

[Greenacres]

I know there isn't generally a lot of love for rugby among football fans...although coming the other way it can border on loathing at times...but I would like to see us adopt the rule from that game of only the team captain being allowed to approach the referee, and them being present when a member of their team is being warned, booked or dismissed.

We would probably see a reduction in the amount of dissent aimed at officials, maybe not to start but more likely once accepted forms of behaviour are more widely accepted. This might encourage more people to get involved in refereeing, if there is less abuse aimed in their direction, or they actually have the tools to deal with it.

 

[denzel ecfc]

Outside of one or two individual decisions such as the penalty Exeter got against us and one that wasn’t given to us against Burton I can’t think of anything that was particularly questionable in any of our games. Over the course of the season I do believe it evens out. Last year though we were never awarded a penalty ourselves we got very fortunate with a Mal Benning handball that wasn’t given in the playoff semi.

One that may change my outlook is tomorrows ref against Portsmouth Craig Hicks. He did both of our games against Bristol Rovers last season (which is a problem in itself) and was generally beyond useless for both teams over the course of both games.

Can't believe you're still going on about that. It was a penalty!

 

[SuffolkBlue]

Another Ref that wanted to be the center of attention. The one at Town today must have come from Sunday league