In 2019 former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said: “When I die, I’m going to ask God where the referees are before I choose between heaven and hell.” A harsh assessment, but he’s probably not the only manager that feels that way.
Referees are agents of the game’s justice system, a system probably closer to an aristocracy than a democracy. Rules are set by a select few, handed down from on high by a group of people often deemed to be too far removed from the game to understand how they are ruining it.
And then referees implement those rules, as filtered through their own interpretation. So they don’t represent justice — which is supposed to be blind — so much as power. In contrast managers, officials and players are all powerless.
Who wants to be a referee? You can probably only answer that question in some extreme manner. A referee is either a poor misguided individual who thinks the game can be regulated fairly or a power-obsessed egomaniac.
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The truth is that referees tend to be more often right in their judgments than they are wrong, even though they are making split-second decisions in fast-moving games.
Referees that stick particularly closely to the rules can be viewed as pernickety, while there are others that are more permissive and understanding of the situations that arise during a fast-paced, highly-heated game. In truth that should be more problematic, because a foul is a foul irrespective of intention, especially when teams are pushing at the boundaries of a game, looking for that 1 per cent advantage that might earn them victory. And yet fans seem to prefer this hands-off approach.
Referees can decide how the game is played, according to their interpretation. And all players and spectators must submit to that. The vitriol directed towards referees by fans is probably just frustration at understanding that we are powerless. It is often said that a good refereeing job is when the official is barely noticed — but a bad display makes it crystal clear how much influence they have.
Petulance and intimidation need to be stamped out, which means heavily punishing those who are unable to control their frustrations
Certain sports, Gaelic games included, have a serious problem when it comes to respecting referees. It starts early, when you can go along to underage games and hear mentors and parents screaming abuse at referees. Reform is needed — as is clearly evidenced by how few people want to do the job with the whistle these days. Should volunteers willingly show up only to be greeted with abuse, name calling and physical violence in an amateur world?
Of course not.
Here’s the truth. The referee is doing their best. And no, they are not out to get you. They are simply trying to do the best job they can with the blunt implement that is a flawed rule book. And they are extremely important. Anybody else can choose to go home and the game will still go ahead. But no referee means no game can be played.
Adding to that problem is the obsession in the GAA — and possibly Ireland in general — with thinking that wearing a bib or standing near a sideline gives you power. But the man in the bib is the true egomaniac, not the referee.
Sport only makes sense with rules, so we need someone to enforce them. We need the referees to have power, and player and mentors need to accept that.
You might think you are being a big hard man running on to confront a referee, but all you are doing is making a fool of yourself, and getting the world to bear witness.
Petulance and intimidation need to be stamped out, which means heavily punishing those who are unable to control their frustrations. Because if we don’t have referees, we have nothing.
