Careless, Reckless or Excessive Force – The plight of the Premier League Refs

 

12:30pm. Manchester City vs. Liverpool. The stage is set for an incredible game. Two titans of English football, new and old, ready to rut like autumnal stags.

Expecting a fierce contest, we saw instead a clinical City side put a Liverpool team – who are hardly renowned for their defending – to the sword. This defeat was not due to horrific defending – any more so than usual – but because of Saido Mané’s first red card as a Liverpool player.

And, unfortunately for football, the focus is once again on the referee and, not for the first time, John Moss.

Referees have always struggled with the prospect of red cards. Remember when a player nearly died? No, not Robin van Persie, but Petr Cech when he was recklessly challenged by Steven Hunt. Cech ended up in hospital, minutes from death, with surgeons forced to fix metal plates in his head. Hunt, it’s worth noting, was not sent off.

It was at the point where I became more acutely aware of the problems that referees face. They are forced to make split-second decisions on games worth millions of pounds. They have duty of care well beyond their pay-grade. The footballers, the fans, the game itself, each a part of what referees are expected to take note of.

It’s a high-pressure job which bears little fruit. Sure, they get the occasional plaudits for playing the advantage rule well, but football fans will always look outward for blame, and refs are regularly at the epicentre of this.

The problem is perpetuated by the ambiguous rules that refs are forced to work under.

The International Football Association Board (The IFAB) determine the laws of the game each season. It is Law 12 that often shoulders most of the scrutiny.

In reference to fouls, the Law dictates that “A direct free kick is awarded if a player commits any of the following offences against an opponent in a manner considered by the referee to be careless, reckless or using excessive force.”

•Careless is when a player shows a lack of attention or consideration when making a challenge or acts without precaution. No disciplinary sanction is needed

•Reckless is when a player acts with disregard to the danger to, or consequences for, an opponent and must be cautioned

•Using excessive force is when a player exceeds the necessary use of force and endangers the safety of an opponent and must be sent off

And here lies the inevitable issue: interpretation. Each and every fan will have their own ideas of what constitutes what, and it’s impossible to avoid personal biases. Views consistently go from one end of the spectrum:

To the other:

What makes things more complex is that many are people who’ve seen the same incident in slow motion and through various angles on TV.

A referee’s job is difficult and it’s made harder, not clearer by the rules.

There’s an inevitability that every pundit under the sun will present their micro-analyses with the upmost conviction. One will say clear red, the other will say it’s a yellow. Most will say Mané had every right to go for the ball. In fact, even Pep has sympathy for Mané’s plight.

The idea of careless, reckless and excessive force are all vague and unconvincing. It’s a definition that doesn’t define. Is Mane careless? Perhaps, yeah I could see that. There was an unfortunate collision, but both players went for the ball. Reckless? Yup, that too. I guess he did endanger Edison. Excessive force? Well, he clattered the poor fella.

It’s impossible.

One thing we seem to forget is that football is not a non-contact sport. It is then up to the referees as to what is deemed too much.

Gary Cahill was recently sent off against Burnley – going over the top of the ball and ending up inside Defour’s colon. Even Cruyff’s idol, Hal Robson-Kanu, was sent off for an innocuous raised elbow. Both of these cards could’ve easily been yellows or nothing at all.

It has now got to the stage where some form of refereeing controversy seems to surface every game week in the Premier League. And yet, there is no real saviour coming over the horizon.

A league and game that is advancing and taking over the world like imperialist Britain is being dragged to earth with a bump by every decision which mars the game.

Video refereeing does seem to offer a new hope – with 100% less Skywalker – but if football fans are divided despite all the various angles that Sky and BT provide, how is the VR meant to do any better?

One suggestion that occasionally raises its irksome head is that referees do a post-match interview. But would that help? Unlikely. All that happens is that a referee’s authority is called into question by one journalist or other. And these referees, who are not used to talking to the camera, might flail and flounder under the undue pressure.

My suggestion is, as I’d obviously like to think, a tidy compromise:  referees after every game write up a match report – so why not make this report public?

True, it doesn’t change what happened in the game, but maybe an insight into the ref’s perspective would provide some clarity for fans. Referees are not infallible and perhaps some transparency would direct away scrutiny. Fans are more and more disenchanted with a game that seems evermore out-of-touch with today’s modern supporter, so why not open up a bit?