What to do in this situation?

[Bo650]

Last night I was in the middle for the first time this season, I have been an AR for 4 games so far this year. Anyway, the game was U-16 boy's rec league. The game was getting pretty physical late in the game as one team was up 6-0 A kid, who I had already booked for a very hard tackle from behind, ran up behind another kid from the other team who was dribbling down the side and punched him in the side of the head. I immediately show him the red card and he is off without any complaints from the players or coaches. However, the parents from the team of the kid who got punched were going nuts and threatening to beat up this 15 year old kid, cursing at him, and the such. I told the parents to stop saying those things and one told me to "F--- Off and watch the game."

I took a minute and spoke with the AR's (one of which was reffing his first ever game) and we decided to ask the parents who were swearing at the kids to leave. We did, and they refused. The game was about 1 minute from full time, so after talking to the coaches, we called the game. Later that night, I got a call from the head ref. of the league telling me that the parents had filed a complaint, and he said that I had no right to call the game early, even if it was only 1 minute early. He didn't tell me what I should do in that situation, though.

Does anyone have any suggestions of how I could handle this type of thing the next time that it happens? Also, how wrong was I to call it early? Keep in mind, we honestly thought that these parents were going to start attacking the kid that was sent off.

[whitehound]

Last night I was in the middle for the first time this season, I have been an AR for 4 games so far this year. Anyway, the game was U-16 boy's rec league. The game was getting pretty physical late in the game as one team was up 6-0 A kid, who I had already booked for a very hard tackle from behind, ran up behind another kid from the other team who was dribbling down the side and punched him in the side of the head. I immediately show him the red card and he is off without any complaints from the players or coaches. However, the parents from the team of the kid who got punched were going nuts and threatening to beat up this 15 year old kid, cursing at him, and the such. I told the parents to stop saying those things and one told me to "F--- Off and watch the game."

I took a minute and spoke with the AR's (one of which was reffing his first ever game) and we decided to ask the parents who were swearing at the kids to leave. We did, and they refused. The game was about 1 minute from full time, so after talking to the coaches, we called the game. Later that night, I got a call from the head ref. of the league telling me that the parents had filed a complaint, and he said that I had no right to call the game early, even if it was only 1 minute early. He didn't tell me what I should do in that situation, though.

Does anyone have any suggestions of how I could handle this type of thing the next time that it happens? Also, how wrong was I to call it early? Keep in mind, we honestly thought that these parents were going to start attacking the kid that was sent off.You did the right thing. I wouldnt work for a head reff who didnt support his referees.

[ref47]

if your problem is with fans, you need to ask the coach to have them in control or have the coach ask they to leave. do not restart the match until you are satisfied one of those things will occur. if you are told they will be quiet, and they are not, terminate the match. your league should back you on this. most leagues have player and spectator codes of conduct, which do not include the behavior you encountered.

if the parents have recourse, it is through the police against the battery committed by that player. your game report should detail exactly what you observed, who struck who, when, etc. get the ar's to submit reports of what they saw, also. if not required to submit a report by the league, prepare it anyway and keep it with your game records.

here is a sample report format - https://dcnova-referee.org/Forms/form_refreportnew.htm

[Ref Flunkie]

Did you write on the game report that you suspended the match because of the fans? You didn't "call the game early", you abandoned it because fans who were out of control would not leave the field. You have every right to do that, and congrats on calling the game when you did, even if only 1 minute was left. Do what ref47 says and have the entire team submit a report of what happened to the league (not your head referee). Our head referee would go off if something like that happened in our league, and I am disapponited that yours did not help you out more.

Oh, and why am I not surprised these fans were from Michigan ;).

[Bo650]

Thanks to all for your imput! Yes, we all submitted a game report directly to the league. According to one of the ARs, we have the league's backing on our call to abandon the match.

[Ref Flunkie]

Thanks to all for your imput! Yes, we all submitted a game report directly to the league. According to one of the ARs, we have the league's backing on our call to abandon the match.


I'd be tempted to email Carlos (our SRA) and tell him about this as well. You were basically the target of referee abuse. His contact info is on www.msysareferee.net.

[IASocFan]

My only suggestion is to be proactive with the head referee - or asssignor.

If you call to tell him what happened, and the a report is coming, he will be prepared if someone calls him about the game. Like an old manager at work once told me, "NO Surprises." If he knew something about it, he could have asked the parents if you had asked the offending spectators to leave, and if you had reviewed the situation with both coaches. The parents would haven't been able to add much.

When games are out of control, I see know point in continuing - particularly with only a few minutes left and a 6-0 score.

[billf]

The "head" ref has no idea what he's talking about. You terminated the match and that is one of the duties you have as a referee if you feel like continuing the game in that environment isn't wise. I would have terminated the match under those conditions as well and send the match report to the league and to the SRA.

[BC_Ref]

The "head" ref has no idea what he's talking about. You terminated the match and that is one of the duties you have as a referee if you feel like continuing the game in that environment isn't wise. I would have terminated the match under those conditions as well and send the match report to the league and to the SRA.

Heavily and fully agree. You abandoned the game - as the centre, it is your call and your duty. Heck, full blown international games have been abandoned by CRs for fan behaviour (Frisk and Merck have been the two latest that I'm aware of).

Glad to see the league is backing you up. Weird that the head ref didn't back you up (unless the "complaint" had misinformation that he didn't get confirmed - likely given the source) but the league did.

[jkc313]

I'm with the rest on this. Your "head ref" should back you 100%. You abandoned a game that was being disrupted by unruly fans. I would have asked the coaches to intervene but you still made the correct call

[whitehound]

Thanks to all for your imput! Yes, we all submitted a game report directly to the league. According to one of the ARs, we have the league's backing on our call to abandon the match.I left michigan last year. Would be interested to know who your head reff is. Would also tell you that the MHSAA purposely avoids certain association referees from the lansing area because they are clueless. If the team was wolves or vardar they could tar and feather you and the state association wont do anything. Just a fact you have to deal with if you referee in michigan. I saw the Vardar U12B coach act like a complete idiot in a state cup final and the state referee center did nothing because they are untouchable in michigan.

[MidwestRef]

You basically did the right thing. The head referee had no right to go off on you without hearing your side of the story. I would report what your head referee said to the SRA as well. If the SRA is good, he/she will have a word with this referee asking to support the referees in the association more.

[nsa]

There is a big difference between "calling a game early", thereby reporting it to the league as a full match, and "terminating a match before full time". In the latter case you do not report a winner or loser. You stipulate that the match was stopped at time X with the score being whatever. It then becomes a league decision as to declaring a winner based upon the score at the time, a winner by forfeit, or a replay.

The problem that the "head ref" had was one of semantics. Because the referee cannot declare the winner of a match that has not gone full time you must write it up as termination.

I told the parents to stop saying those things and one told me to "F--- Off and watch the game." Does he have a brother in Massachusetts? :(

It is hard to remember that we are there for the players when the adults are badly misbehaving. It is the responsibility of the coaches (more specifically, the home coach if you are unable to identify a team affiliation) to provide a safe environment for the match.

If the coach cannot provide a safe environment for the match, then you caution and, possibly, send-off the coach. Then you start with the assistant coaches. If the miscreant parents still don't leave then you wind up with a team without a coach of any kind. At the youth level that is grounds for terminating the match. To use a current phrase from politics, this is the "nuclear option." :)