Stuck in the middle with a whistle
The season end is closing in on us and maybe in more ways than one the end is near for this footballing year.
It has been an interesting year, clubs skating on the thin ice above liquidation and other having managers that maybe should keep it to themselves more.
This serving of Paella and Bovril comes from the not so exciting defeat mid-week at the hands of Livingston (10th April 2012).
I know that I have dished up before about the refs but it is a subject that just keeps coming back, maybe to haunt us, and it gets everyone going!
Enjoy!
Paella and Bovril
Sometimes people do things that bring out the worst in you, they aggravate your little pet hates, and every football fan has one in common, referees.
The man in the middles has had the best game of his life when he is never mentioned. The last thing you want to be as a ref, I think, is to be famous for your last match. Cause if a referee is in the spotlight after their last game it normally means somebody somewhere has spoken out against them and a decision they have made.
It is always going to be a hot topic in football; it’s a tough job, trying to control 22 players whilst being pelted by a few thousand fans baying for your blood. But does that allow them to make massive errors?
Maybe if it just that time of season again, but does it not seem that the refs are in the news again along with the same old questions that comes with it, do we need more officials, do we need video replay, do we just need to accept mistakes happen?
Listening to a match a few weeks ago, it sounded like the ref was a little bit all over the joint and it got me thinking, this game that brings together millions of people every week has advanced over the past few years, faster balls, lighter shoes, better diets for our favorite stars. All this science and technology designed to make the players perform better and the game to be more exciting. So why are the referees not getting the same support, are they supported at all?
Certain managers of teams, that sometimes are too big for their multicolored boots, have been speaking out against the refs, there in Scotland and here in bonny Spain. Toys are been thrown from prams over the performance of the man with the cards. They think that this official had something to do with them losing this and not getting that. But can just one man see everything, can 1 man, his 2 assistant and a guy on the side, see everything? Come on even the guys in the dug out can have more eyes on the game than the officials. So is it any wonder that opinions can differ.
Football for the fan has changed dramatically in the past few years, you can watch your favorite team, or just a decent game of football with all the mod cons, 3D, HD, surround sound, bigger than bed screens, we the fan can have a visual feast from the type of TV coverage now on show. But for me the bit that is still the best is the instant replay from any angle you want, when you want, you can see those slight touches of the chest (or hand), the bounce off the line (or was it over), the penalty that wasn’t (or was it). That is it you see, we can see it again, and again and again., the ref can’t. Is it time for change? But at what point do you stop checking the video, what constitutes a “match changing” decision, a free kick that wasn’t that leads to a goal that results someone going down, or a throw in that wins a cup. Every decision could be threatening to the match’s “real” result.
Even with all the officials, cameras, instant replays they have in American football, mistakes can and will be made. We, the fan will always see it through those tinted specs we think the referee should be wearing. Sometimes we may want to direct them to the nearest optician with a piece of our mind, but would you do their job?
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