NFL games like the Colts-Vikings game today always make me think about how the fouls we call immediately stop play. Referees blow play dead for forward progress or an assumed "down by contact" and wipe a completely valid touchdown off the board, TWICE, rather than letting play go and going to review like VAR does for offside. Made me think of us because by blowing the play dead immediately like that it ruins the rest of the play, and every foul we call does that. Football refs have the HUGE advantage of being able to throw flags, let the play go through, and even pick up the flag afterwards. How I wish we had that option, but we don't, outside of wait and see for advantage.
Not really ref related, but did any AYSO adult league game last night where five shots hit the cross bar. (And learned it isn’t necessarily smart to agree to AR the game after mine if I end up playing midfield all game . . . )
Couldn't find the old "stupid ref tricks" thread, so this will have to do. Why do referees do this to themselves and the league admins? I'm the reports coordinator for an (alleged) adult soccer league and this Supplemental Report came across my desk last night (names changed to protect the guilty): "While the ball was in play in the 65th minute, Scrooge McDuck committed an offense punishable by a direct free kick in a manner that at the time, I considered to have endangered the safety of an opponent. This offense happened next to the touchline in front of the Mouseketeer's technical area. I sent McDuck off for Serious Foul Play because at the time, my opinion was that he made a challenge that endangered the safety of an opponent. However, after reflecting on the situation later on in the day, my opinion now is that the send-off should be downgraded to a caution for a Unsporting Behavior. The offense by McDuck was more reckless in nature in that he acted with disregard to the safety and consequences for the opponent, rather than outright endangering the safety of the opponent."
I would not put that in the official Supplemental Report, but I would contact the league later to discuss the situation.
The first problem is the ref has the writing ability of a third grader trying to write a 100-word essay.
Problem. If you don't write at a 3rd grade level, someone might get confused. Or are you saying it is a student trying to write to fill a page count, not to provide insight?
As noted, the report is too wordy. KISS. Cover the 5 Ws. We get the When?, but an incomplete Who? - a name, but no player number or team identified, so the division director or league admin has more work to do. Eventually, we get the What? (SFP) and Why? (endangered the safety of an opponent, although the actual Law 12 foul is never stated). The Where? adds credence to the send-off given that a heavy foul in front of the opposing team's bench will significantly raise the emotional tone of the match. Regarding the second-guessing about the colour of card - I'm with @Kit. Never put that in writing. And I'd go so far as to say not to talk to the league about it. Does he expect us to change it? That's a Pandora's Box that we will not open. Referee judgement cannot be protested, even if it's by the referee. 8^} However, he should talk to someone - a Referee Mentor or Coach. I'm curious what advice a Mentor/Coach would give for the next time the ref gets in that situation.
Game report from high school boys varsity game last night. Not mine. Four cautions, one send off. ALL to coaches! Okay, the visiting team's coach got a caution for jewelry. Home team, losing 3-0, in the last minute and a half, head coach sent for second caution, having continued to call the referees 'crap' after he got the first caution, and the assistant, who took his place when he got sent, also cautioned for running his mouth. I'm sure their AD will appreciate the red card fine at a point where even a non-soccer person can tell that the game is over. My Monday game (HS BV) had a 0-0 score with four minutes left. Really lackadaisical game by both teams, until the last 10 minutes. PK at 3:34 for home team, stone cold PK. But the clock operator doesn't stop the clock until the PK was scored, so we had to put 30 seconds back on the clock. Last minute of the game, we stopped the clock THREE times. Once for some kicking the ball away time wasting (with plastic), once for an injury and once for a goal, by the home team with 25 seconds left. Do the math. Their clock operator could have cost them that goal, if we hadn't put the time back on the clock.
Funny timing you did this because I was about to say something here tonight: Those of us who complain about HS soccer official timers making mistakes with clock not/stopping (which I have in the past), you haven't seen anything until you've done a sport where there's a shot clock, I'm only thinking of basketball and water polo. I didn't want to, but I nearly had a meltdown tonight because the parent (who claimed to be experienced) on a GV water polo match kept not doing it right and we had to keep taking the ball out to reset things. I swear, especially water polo with how much the clock stops, starts, shot clock start/stop/resets, it's really tough having parent volunteers do it. Sometimes we get lucky and the table will be run by a vey experienced group (usually coaches of the other teams, sometimes players of other teams or experienced parents), but when you have a sport like basketball or water polo where you're relying on potentially inexperienced people to control the clock and be recording information about goals/fouls, you realize how good we have it in soccer controlling everything ourselves, especially because any mistakes made with the clock or book everyone still gets angry at us as the refs. Although it is really funny to see a home coach blow up about a clock error or a rare book error and they have to control themselves because it's the parent of one of their players doing it.
The fall before COVID, I had a playoff game where the winning goal was scored with .7 seconds on the clock by the home team. Because of that game, I am always checking to make sure the clock starts/stops when it's supposed to. If the clock operator hadn't been right, it could have cost the home team a win. The clock not starting/stopping at the right time is one of my pet peeves.
Always good to have a referee willing to accommodate the player's wishes. 8^} Supplemental Referee Report "Two yellows for 10 for dissent. Asked me to give him a second yellow after I issued the first so I obliged."
U16B travel tourney last year, I YC'd a player for a late reckless challenge from behind. He loses his mind, starts spewing all sorts of belligerent nonsense at me, finishing with, "... and I'll bet you're gonna card me for that too!!!" That is correct, young man. And a RC fot 2CT to go with it. Coach apologized to me after the game for his player's behavior. "I couldn't even understand what point he was trying to make." Neither could I, coach!
Had a player in an O-30 game yesterday engage in some routine dissent about a call in midfield. Referee carded him for it, so the player doubled down with some OFFINABUS language, so he was off all right, off to the parking lot. Guys on his bench saying "He doesn't know when to shut up."
I was watching a girls MS game being played on the HS turf, prior to my game, last night. Due to being at HS, the clock was in operation, which is never the case for MS games. I got there with about 10 minutes to play and score was 0-0. With about 90 seconds to play, the home team finally scored. For the rest of the game, the visitors go crazy trying to tie the score. Visitor launches a long, high arcing shot, and while the ball is in the air, the horn goes off for the end of the game. Ball eludes the GK and lands in the net. As I am walking onto the field, I am trying to remember what the rule is (at least for NFHS). I asked the ref what he called and he said it was no goal. But he was not sure and neither was I. I also ref lacrosse and know that you can score after time expires and I thought this might be a similar situation. When I got home, I checked the NFHS rules, and I can't find an answer. It is really too bad, because, if there is no horn, I think most refs would have counted the goal. And this kinda explains why some schools/leagues will shut off clock for last few minutes and let refs keep the time. Anyone know the official answer for a HS game? I guess you would have to say no goal because players will stop playing. Just like you can't score after a whistle. Really makes me want to not have a visible running clock for future games.
Under NFHS, the game is over when the clock hits 0:00.0. Rule 7-1.4 "A period shall end at the expiration of time." Rule 6-2.3.c & e Timer describes actions for expiration of time. The situation you describe is why they're supposed to do the 10-second countdown, have a horn at 0:00, etc. If the ball's not wholly over the goal line before 0:00, no goal. Been there.
The time on the clock is the time left in the game. As stated above, if it's 0:00 on the clock, the game is over and a goal cannot be scored. I had a game where a goal was scored with .7 seconds left, but the horn went off because the clock operator didn't stop for the goal. I made them put one second back on the clock and had the kickoff. I explained that if the ball had crossed the line after, it wouldn't have counted because time would have expired and we would be going into overtime.
Was the player the coach's son? I swear 90% of the time the worst behaved kid on a team is the coach's kid.
Years ago, I dealt with a HS VG early season game, solo referee (dual partner did not show up) where the small portable game clock was at the halfway line. Announcer is counting down the last 10 seconds. He gets to zero, the ball goes in the back of the net, for the only goal of the game, and the referee counted it. Even brought the ball back and had the losing team kick off. Visiting school AD calls me to complain about the referee's decision. I told the AD, "Oh, it's on YouTube." She said their school blocks You Tube, so she would have to go home at lunch time to see it. She called me back that afternoon to apologize and added, "I'll never believe that crazy coach again." The announcer had counted too fast! When he got to zero, there was still four seconds on the clock. Fifteen years later, the referee is retired but the announcer is still there. They now have a real stadium clock.
That's one problem with having someone count down the seconds. They don't know how to read a clock. When the clock hits 4.9, you should say "five". When it hits 3.9, you say "four". People see the seconds and say it. So invariably, you get a count down from someone that says "one" with 1.9 left, and a two second delay before the horn/clock hits 0.0.
Haha, actually no. They lost by 3 or so, a bit over-matched. However, their coach and I had a great chat as we walked back towards the main tent - he was talking about teaching technicals and tactics, developing their understanding and enjoyment of the game, keeping parents in check, etc. Nothing about any particular calls except, "You guys did great, would love to have to again." He renewed my hope for humanity . That particular player had been a challenge for him in various ways the past year or two.