From the PMO, to the Pitch & back again
??Long read alert ??
I usually keep my LinkedIn posts & content purely for work, but here's a post which offers a little bit of personal insight along with a dose of my love for stats.
Last year I retired from playing football, a 25 year journey, ended. I swapped playing for the whistle and this weekend marked the close of my first season as a fully qualified FAW referee. When reflecting on the season, my performances and experiences, there are 8 lessons I wanted to share with you:
#1 Communication?
Every game as a lone referee, the only tool you have to keep you safe is communication. You may think its your whistle, or your legs but neither of them can negotiate or reason (plus there’s always someone who’s faster than you!).? From negotiation, to explanation, resolution & justification. When to use humour or to communicate with empathy, and sometimes to communicate instructively or assertively.
Navigating intimidating scenarios or people, managing 22+ different personalities over 90 minutes & resolving emotive conflict is difficult, but without good communication,? you can be in danger of losing control of a game, heightening emotional responses instead of defusing them and your physical safety could be compromised without it.?The worst thing to say to an irate individual is “calm down” and the statement never to say is “it doesn’t matter”.?
#2 Decision-making
Ultimately as a referee your reputation and performance hinges on good, consistent decision making. You have one opportunity to get each decision right. No replay, no rewind, no checks, no data. What is good decision making? Being in the right place at the right time & rapidly processing the situation that enables you to make one. Acting with clarity based on your interpretation of a situation. Moving quickly on from a bad one and showing courage to get the next one right. Making tough decisions. Going with your gut. No guesswork, just act on the courage of your convictions. Accept that when you make a decision, not everyone will agree but understand why you've made it.?Own the bad ones - on more than one occasion this season I've apologised to players and coaches for making an error, or a bad call and that goes further than maybe getting the decision right during the game because it shows honesty and integrity.
#3 Respect?
In the game, the messaging is very much aimed at players and coaches being commanded to respect officials. While I totally agree with the sentiment, officials have to officiate from a position of respect for players, coaches and the fixture. Regardless of prior encounters, every game is a clean slate, but when dealing with players or coaches who challenge or disregard authority, you have to find a way to set your stall out early, manage them, leverage their peers or give them a job that can serve you and the game. In one fixture this year, the most difficult character I had to deal with was a captain. He was the alpha figure in the side by mouth, by stature and by talent. Simultaneously, friends of his team congregated on the touchline which is prohibited, so I asked him? if he could help me control the spectators by keeping them honest and away from the pitch. Small job, but worked a treat. The level of respect you show towards players and coaches is rarely reciprocated but for every minute of every game, your level of respect for them can’t compromise.? That's not to say you agree with or accept every ounce of criticism which can often turn to abuse, which is never ok or justified.
#4 Positioning
The fundamentals of refereeing relies heavily on your position. The position you take up on the pitch impacts your perspective and the ability to make good decisions. There are elements that are in your control like fitness, but there’s others that aren’t which need to be mitigated as much as possible. You have to anticipate where to be in the next phase or 2 phases, where's the ball going to be, a potential game changing action, are players being hindered by your position?. I remember when being taught how to drive… Mirror, signal, position, manoeuvre. But if you’re not in the right position, the manoeuvre or the decision is going to suffer.
#5 Concentration
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There's no room for complacency. In the first half of the season, I found the last 10 minutes of each game was usually chaotic - a losing team was pushing for an equaliser, I'm physically tired, weather conditions change and can become a hindrance, players and coaches regularly appealing or contesting decisions which can plant a seed of doubt. From the minute you park up, to the moment you leave, you need eyes in the back of your head. It’s also funny how the mind can wander if you allow it… oooh, that was close, bloody hell I think he’s broken his leg, what to have from the Chinese takeaway tonight? When your concentration dips, the game can soon get away from you or become chaotic.
#6 Pressure
Local, amateur games are as important as the world cup final to participants. The competitiveness of players and coaches is full throttle. While the world cup isnt actually on the line, every single action, word and decision you make is under scrutiny by at least 22 players and 2 coaches. For me it adds to the enjoyment of refereeing... the bigger the game, the more pressure there is on decisions. Honestly, the most pressure I feel is the coin toss at before kick off. Sh*t coin toss and its an awful first impression in front of the Captains. Similarly, your conviction in your whistle blow is judged... whimpering whistling and you'll be seen as weak or lacking confidence but more of that later. Enjoy the authority too much and you'll interrupt the flow of the game and the atmosphere will quickly turn negative. Every facet of a referee's performance (even grassroots level) is impacted by pressure and their ability to deal with it. It helps me focus, but I've been a player and so increasing the pressure on a referee to somehow influence his decision making to favour your side is a tactic that every referee is trying to resist.
#7 Support
On a Saturday afternoon, you're on your own. 1 whistle, 1 voice, 2 flags and 2 ears. They are your tools. That's it. But beyond the parameters of an individual fixture, I'm fortunate to be part of a society consisting of other referees that is predicated on support and community. An inclusive club of counterparts who respect you and willingly share hints, tips, insights and experiences. If you’re against one of us, you’re against us all. A collective wisdom. A team. Teammates who are genuinely willing to pick up the phone, attend your games to provide feedback or just check in. Unsung heroes and the backbone of football so that players and coaches can play and do so safely.
#8 First impressions
From the moment I get out of the car, to what I’m wearing, introduction to coaches, firmness of handshake, the inspection of the pitch and nets, the coin toss, the first blow of the whistle, the first foul… it all counts. If any of these facets are weak, my experience as a player tells me there’s a fragility or weakness in the referee that could potentially be exploited. The first foul you award indicates to players and coaches what type of infringements matter. The confidence behind the whistle is a gauge of assertiveness and authority. Introductions and conversations with coaches and captains prior to the game let them understand your personality. The devil is in the details, and when it comes to first impressions, you're judged by them.
You may agree that some of these lessons, observations and experiences can serve us in the workplace or not, and that’s fine. But as for me, I find it incredibly interesting that a hobby can enrich you as a professional and there’s lessons that can be transferred into our workplaces or ways of working from the most unlikely of sources.
I also promised stats... now this is where my love for football and spreadsheets meet!
Season statistics: