Referees recieve a great deal of critizim, some justified, most, in my opinion not but that is another subject. Often fans post on the referee portion of this site to raise havoc and say their concerns are not being taken seriously. However if you were organizing a FIFA tournament which referees would you select and why. What makes a good referee?
For me, experience, fitness, human relations or management skills coupled with a love of the game and -- indispensably -- a sense of humor. Two center referees who I thought did outstanding work in WC02 were Pierluigi Collina and Anders Frist. I'd like either one of them in the center. There are some who like Urs Meier, Hugh Dallas and Kim Milton Neilsen, but I'm not among them. I'd like to see Brian Hall get a few high level assignments, too, since he seems to rise to the occasion. As far as the bit about "they're all useless", well, take it for what it's worth...
I guess I wasn't aware he gave a bad penalty in that match.... Overall, I like how he handles the players. He times I've seen him, he communicated well with the players and looked in control of the match.
> But didn't Frist make a wrong call on Spain > against Ireland? I am referring to the first PK. The first PK was the taking down of Damien Duff just inside the box. The Spanish player tackled from the side and lay his leg across the front of Damien Duff. Whether of not Damien Duff made serious contact with the Spanish player is debatable but either way it is a trip or an attempted trip. If the Referee feels that it endangered Damien Duff then he/she can issue a yellow (as Frist did) or red card. I have looked at this incident on DVD several times and it looks like a good call from Frist. Crowdie
It has nothing to do with the fans or teams or outcome. You want to know what makes a good referee? Ask the players after the match. They know if they were whistled for bogus calls or if the ref was competent enough to catch the fakers. Wether or not they interfered with the flow of the game. Of course then you have to rely on the honesty of the players, but only they truely know.