Tonight my team "won" our game 6-5, but the ref says the final score was 6-6 and will be reported to the league as such. I play keeper, and I always know how many goals I let in. How the ref miscounted, I have no idea. Questions: 1. Do I have any recourse to try and have the ruling overturned? I am going to talk to the league director tomorrow and at least try to protest the decision. 2. Has this ever happened in any games you've reffed/seen? If so, what happened?
Well, it is the referee's DUTY to keep a record (the score) of the match. If the referee wrote down that the score was 6-6, then it was 6-6 even if it was 6-5. I know it sounds bad, but that is the way it is. Now, I am personally a meticulous note keeper when it comes to these things because of all the trouble it can cause if you get a fact wrong. I know some refs though who keep the game score on a sheet where they kept 7 other games... I don't know how they do it and I think it is doing a disservice to the game. However, just as with anything a notekeeping error can occur easily in life, so it can happen unfortunetly. I too am a keeper, so I understand EXACTLY what you mean about counting the goals against. I used to even keep a spreadsheet of my game stats for my HS years. That way when I was on JV I could have a GAA by min played avg. -- In any case, I find it likely that you would not forget if you gave up 5 or 6 goals. So on to your question, do you have any recourse? The answer is, maybe. If you can get both teams managers and some players from both teams to agree that the final score was 6-5 you would have a pretty convincing argument to make to the league. If the other team was feeling particularly unsporting they would probably say the referee was right though and thus pick up the extra point and take two off of you. Or perhaps you have the entire match recorded on video in which every goal of the match was recorded. Then perhaps you have the evidence you require. Short of those things, you're likely SOL. For me, luckily in cases where my booking was less than stellar, my assistant refs did the job I asked of them, and they kept a back up book for me. More often I run into the problem of jotting down a caution or a goal on the wrong side of the page home/away (when you're constantly running all game something like that is easier to do than you might think.) I'm sure it has happened all too often. I'm interested to hear what other members of this board will have to say.
This is exhibit A why I always have ALL officials on my crew keep score when I'm the center (including and especially the fourth). Mistakes do happen, so it's better to have more sources. On your own, however, when you're reffing solo. All you can do is be very, very sure you're keeping the score correctly.
Problems with tonight's game: 1. Only one ref - it's a 7v7 league on a shortened field, so only one ref is used. 2. Downpour - we played most of the game in torrential rain, there were puddles all over the field, and most players had trouble adjusting. 3. The players - you'd be surprised how many players in the league don't keep track of the score when they're playing. This leads to mass confusion that can sometimes include the ref. 4. The ref - after the game he went to the other team and asked (in Spanish), "The game was a tie, right?". This happened while I was talking to the other team about the score, so I think the ref may have thought I didn't speak Spanish (too bad for him that I do). Of course the other team sheepishly agreed after telling me they didn't know what the final score was. In the end, it seemed that only me and a couple players on my team were completely sure of what the final score was. Most of the players on my team knew we had won, but the general confusion about the score is usual in this league.
That's a pretty ugly situation. Only one ref, confusion over the score, probably not too many spectators due to the rain... I don't think there is a whole lot you can do other than inform your competition authorities and leave it up to them. They probably won't decide in your favor due to lack of conclusive evidence, but at least it is a 7v7 rec league and not a major sporting competition!
Just remember, "When the ref is right, the ref is right. When the ref is wrong, the ref is right." Sometimes frustrating, but true.
You forgot a part: "When the ref is right, the ref is right. When the ref is wrong, the ref is right, unless the FA decides to change it." (the FA from England if it's not clear)
There should be some oversight somewhere... I've heard of cases of refs awarding players a second yellow card without showing them red. They're human. I would say try to find a reliable neutral witness?
This happened in the MLS (USA pro league) and the referee crew from that match was suspended from professional games for 6 months. As there was a video record of the problem, so the league had the evidence to do something. In local leagues, it is just much more difficult to find a way around the referee.
Basically that's what I was taught as a youth hockey player: " the ref may not always be right, but he's NEVER wrong."
Most of these appeals are rejected anyway. Law 5 says, "The decisions of the referee regarding facts connected with play are final." The only time an appeal generally works is when a referee sends off the wrong player, or shows two cautions to the same player without sending him off. Without video evidence, and with half the players and officials involved supporting the referee, i doubt your team could make a case. And even if you could, i would think the match would have to be replayed in full; you certainly wouldn't be handed a win (not that this is a valid reason, but if the other team thought the score was 6-5, they would have played the game much differently than if they thought it was 6-6). That said, there was one instance in one my matches where i cautioned a player, and wrote her number and the time down under the goals section of my data sheet instead of the discipline section. At the end of the match i immediately caught it because 1) i remembered the score, and was confused why my sheet had an extra goal on it, and 2) i rememebred giving a caution, and was confused why my sheet didn't have a caution on it. If a cation was given in the match, you could see if the referee failed to report it, because he accidentally counted it as a goal. But to be honest, i can't really understand a referee not knowing the score in his match. At every kick-off (except the opening one), i always say the score out loud before i blow the whistle...maybe the referee in your match could try doing the same from now on.
It's easy to not know the score. Particularly in those 6-5 games where one team gets a couple of goals ahead, and you lose track. I learned after one of those games to brng pencil/pen and paper or my writable cards and write the time of each goal. I haven't had that problem since.
I suppose i could see it...i hope it never happens to me though. Are the writeable cards good for you? I'm always afraid the ink will smear in my pocket, or worse, i'd lose everything if it rains. I just use a data form folded in half and stuck in front of the yellow card (if i put it between the card and my chest it gets ruined from sweat). I'd like to try something with more space to write notes, or something that won't crumble in the rain, but i have no ideas. I also don't like that standard foldy plastic thing (card holder i guess). Maybe i just don't use it properly.
Write-on cards are actually quite difficult to get the ink off. They are also quite large. Personally I've found it appears unprofessional to be walking around with a yellow card in your hand writing on it.
I recall one game I recorded incorrectly. When the teams changed ends of the field at half, I somehow flipped home and away scores on my wallet form. I knew home had won, now why did my wallet say it was 2-2? That got straightened out with the help of the AR. That was a weird game all around. I was scheduled to AR, but the center didn't show (we had advance notice that he might be unavoidably delayed). It was a U14 or U15 B game, and partway through the first half, I realized that I hadn't called a foul for at least 20 minutes! Another game I was the AR, and after the 2nd goal I noticed the center wasn't recording anything. This was youth play; our AR's don't usually back up the center. But seeing him not write anything down, I quickly recorded the goal, and when I next got up to the center line, asked the coach who scored the first goal. At halftime, the center says something like, "Good game - the score's tie, right?" No, it was 4-2. Good thing one of us was keeping track.
I was never happy with either the write on cards, or the pre-printed forms with the little boxs, so I designed my own some years ago. Rather than horizontally, it works vertically in the data wallet, which I find more convenient.More important, it contains places to record just about everything you need to include in a USSF game report. Here is a link to the PDF file: http://www.whipplesargent.com/ref/refcard.pdf
Seriously, Whipple, send that off to Official Sports. I think that card is a nice alternative to what they have. I use the Brian Hall cards for my high school/college matches, because they don't smear in the rain/perspiration (yes, I do sweat through the data wallet at times), and they are easier follow for me. I think if you added some gridlines for scoring/card demarcation, you might have a decent side income.
whipple's is nice, but I've seen a lot of independently made ones that are nicer, the same, or worse. Search around on the internet until you find what you like. I use OSI out of laziness. They cost 5 cents a game, add in your own costs and it's not worth it for me. Sorry, whipple, not revolutionary enough, although I do like the 2nd side for the other report info in case you don't do it at the field and have bad memory. What are these Brian Hall cards? whipple: not sure if you do this already, but I've seen assignors supplement the assignment fees nicely selling score sheets and equipment.
They're absolutly great. They're 2 sided and they're $20 for 50 cards. Too pricey, so I use them only in big games like college, pro, and regional finals... But they're awesome.
link? I tried to look before and found nothing. But if anyone's never read the California North newsletter, they have a couple interesting articles, including one about national camp.
http://www.officialsports.com/det_2050.htm This is the link to the Durapro cards from Brian Hall. They are $20 for 50 front-and-back cards, so you get 100 games from them. Like USSF_REF said, I save them for my centers on big HS or regional-type games.
If the league has a report that needs to be signed by the coaches and the referees, then don't sign it. If you feel that you must sign it, add a notation and initial the notation. Finally, you should appeal to the other manager's sense of fair play and ask the manager to not sign or notate the report.