FA CALL OFF THE POSSE
Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard
The Football Association are set to sanction a
revolutionary new rule that will mean only team captains are
permitted to talk to referees next season.
The change will apply across the entire game in England
and signals the end of baying mobs of players chasing referees to
argue decisions. Only fine tuning remains before the rule is given
the go-ahead in time for the start of the Football League two weeks
from today and the Premier League kick-off on August 16.
There could be tougher punishment for players and managers who
abuse referees and, in ‘grass-roots’ games, parents and other
spectators will have to stand in roped-off areas. The moves are
part of the FA’s Respect campaign, to help referees and assistants
reinstate their authority.
At the top of the game, the aim is to prevent incidents such as the
red card last season of Liverpool’s Javier Mascherano for
repeatedly showing dissent to referee Steve Bennett. At grass
roots, the campaign wants to staunch the haemorrhaging of referees
out of the game and tackle the critical shortage of
officials.
There are more than 40,000 registered football clubs in England,
some running 12 or more teams. Yet there are fewer than 30,000
people qualified to referee or act as an assistant referee.
However many are recruited each season, at least as
many give up. Most of those who quit cite unacceptable behaviour of
parents at children’s matches or abuse by spectators and players at
adult games.
When Lord Triesman, himself a former referee, became chairman of
the FA last January, he gave enthusiastic support to the Respect
campaign and two events in the Premier League proved a watershed.
The first was when Chelsea’s Ashley Cole turned his back on referee
Mike Riley in a blatant show of insolent disdain during a match at
Tottenham in March. In the same incident, Chelsea captain John
Terry led a posse of players in a mass confrontation with
Riley.
The second was Mascherano’s serial dissent at Old Trafford a few
days later. Under the new regime, referees will still be able to
talk to any player but will be encouraged to deliver most comments
and instructions via the captains.
And only captains will be able to approach referees to “ask” about
decisions.