Protect refs or lose recruits

14 April 2012

UEFA today warned that football will struggle to attract new referees if they are not guaranteed more respect and security following one of the worst weeks in the game's history for abuse of officials.

The issue of referee protection has been highlighted by the mass brawl during Fulham's game at West Brom and the alleged harassment of referee Mike Dean by the visitors last weekend, and by Anders Frisk having to call off Roma's Champions League game with Dynamo Kiev after being struck by an object thrown from the crowd.

Andy Roxburgh, the former Scotland manager who is now UEFA's football development director, said: "The key thing that worries me is the word respect is missing.

"If we overdo abusing the star referees, recruitment is going to be affected. Who is going to go into refereeing with all the trouble it causes and if you are going to get hit with things?

"It is very important for the game itself to really protect the referee and be more respectful. Everybody needs to take responsibility - the players, coaches, the authorities and the security officials."

Europe's governing body were generally happy with the refereeing at Euro 2004 when it was discussed by national coaches at a conference in Stockholm this week attended by Sven-Goran Eriksson.

But it is clear that UEFA want national authorities to get tough with players who mob the referee, by using video evidence to nail troublemakers. There are also suggestions that more countries should introduce a "laws of the game" test for young professional players.

The Football Association have no such test in place at the moment. But FA officials have confirmed that video evidence will be used when they study the case of Fulham, who have been charged with failing to ensure that their players conducted themselves properly at West Brom.

Dean has claimed Fulham's players repeatedly swarmed around him in a deliberate attempt to influence his decisions in the 1-1 draw at The Hawthorns, which also witnessed a 20-man brawl.

Roxburgh said: "When players mob officials, video evidence should be used against them and the players should know that will happen. The referee should step back from the mob and go for the culprits with cards.

"The people who mob and attack referees should be dealt with afterwards via the cameras. They would start to think twice."

He added: "It is also about education of players. In some countries, they actually make the young professional players do a 'laws of the game' test."

UEFA have awarded Dynamo Kiev a 3-0 victory and ordered Roma to play their next two Champions League games behind closed doors after Frisk left the pitch with blood pouring from his head in Rome.

Frisk has since decided to take a break from the game and pulled out of a top match in Sweden on Monday.

Roxburgh said even television pundits need to tone down the manner of their criticism of officials, although he suggested that technology may have to be introduced in the long term to help officials - a controversial issue for the world governing body, FIFA.

He said: "Every incident is being highlighted. Every decision the referee makes is being analysed.

"Remember the referee is running. He is not a TV camera.You are racing up the pitch to follow a counter-attack near the end of the game and you have to make an instant decision. That is not an easy job.

"I think we have to do anything we can to help their status - maybe at some point in the future, technology may have to come in to help them."

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