Arsenal Opinion – A life-long Gooner’s defence of the honesty and intergrity of referees

A life long Gooner’s defence of referees honesty by Jon Fox

My fellow Gooners, I have long been planning to write this piece, as I have long been saddened at the general assumption that some refs are biased and dishonest. I think quite differently.

I have to declare an interest here, as I regularly run the line in my local Croydon league. I am not qualified to referee and would never wish to either. In a higher level than Sunday parks football, I would not be allowed to run the line, unless I were qualified.

But needs must and I repeat, there are not enough refs and not enough “linos” either, as refs are packing it up through frustration and even fear.

What I see, week in week out, is frankly a disgraceful and disgusting baiting of refs in general.

Grassroots football of today is the PREM league of tomorrow, surely? 

It ought to alarm those who hold our beloved sport dear – which surely means all of us – that refs are leaving in droves. and some who are gutsier are still reffing well into their seventies, as there are too few younger ones willing to put up with the nonsense they have to endure.

In all sincerity, would YOU personally when working, whatever your occupation be, accept such verbal abuse and often the threat, even the actuality sometimes of physical abuse too! Would you?? Somehow, I THINK NOT!

Now, I presume you individually like to regard yourself as a fair minded and rational human. If you don’t, then I am wasting my time and yours.

I have no doubt that we are fundamentally good people who wish no harm on anyone. Equally though, I have little doubt that most of us, myself definitely included, consider most Prem refs and especially those who ref our games, often useless and, let us say, as needing massive improvement.

I will not comment in this piece on VAR directly, as I have twice written of it previously on JA. I will soon be penning an article, not on integrity, but on standard of refs, in general. That will have a very different conclusion from this piece, I promise you.

In this article, it is a side issue, as I WRITE NOT ABOUT COMPETENCY but about honesty. Of course, I fully agree VAR has had a massive effect on our game and on how refs’ referee. But in historical terms it is still a newcomer and therefore only of recent importance.

But refs being called cheats and called all the names under the sun has been going on for countless decades. Years ago, we used to hear that old chestnut, shouted from the terraces “Get some specs, ref”. And back then most fans would laugh at such a comment, probably agree with it and thus let off steam.

You could argue, when at that level only, well fair enough! Provided it went no further than that. I have never thought and still do not, that football is a game for timid and thin-skinned fans or players. God knows I don’t, as many of my posts on JA will amply testify across the years.

But ever since social media came in and we all became “weaponised”, it has got far worse. You know, if you are being honest, on this very site, how often refs are called cheats, called biased and so on!

I say with good reason, that far from refs being biased, it is we fans, MOST of us, who are biased and we, disgracefully and unthinkingly, take out our own natural frustrations on professional people whose honour is at stake. Just visit other clubs fan sites and see how many of them also call refs cheats and biased against their team too. You will have your eyes opened. But you will gain vital perspective too.

And, though many are nowhere near good ENOUGH, we have no right to mistreat decent normal humans, doing their level best in an impossible position, as we regularly do.

Maybe you are convinced yourself that refs are “bent” – but however incompetent, with or without VAR, decisions frequently are, (and I firmly state, MANY ARE SCANDALOUS) – that does NOT mean that refs lack integrity.

Referees are ordinary, decent people who love the game and are trying to do, in an almost impossible position, their very best, and to give the very best and most honest decision they can.

If you refuse to accept that, then there is nothing else I can ever write to persuade you otherwise.

But if, I say ‘if’, I have given at least some of you real food for thought, then this piece has not been wasted. I do hope this reaches many minds on JA.

Thank you for reading it, my friends.

COYG

Jon Fox (JA’s arch old git!)