This past week I witnessed two very different examples of on-field behaviour towards match officials – and the consequences of both were poles apart.
It made me consider where the line should be drawn with respect to how players interact with umpires and referees.
The first incident surrounded Port Adelaide midfielder Andrew Moore who was reported for making contact with an umpire.
Moore’s action came while playing for Port’s SANFL-aligned side. Initially the umpire involved, Craig Fleer, did not make a report.
Moore was however summoned to front the tribunal after officials viewed video tape of the game
Fleer, when he was alerted to the development, said it was “something totally minor”.
The SANFL Tribunal viewed what happened as something far more serious than that. Moore could be clearly seen on the video pushing Fleer in the chest.
It did not appear to be overly forceful contact however Tribunal Commissioner Ian White said it was enough to force the umpire “a step and a half backwards”.
Moore, for his part, pleaded guilty to deliberately contacting the umpire, but in his defence said he was trying to demonstrate to Fleer what had occurred earlier in the game when he had a free kick awarded against him for contact against opponent Heath Caldwell.
After deliberating the Tribunal handed Moore a three-game suspension.
SANFL general manager of football, Adam Kelly said after the verdict “it is imperative all umpires are able to participate in our game in an environment which reflects the respect we have for the important role they play”.
Moore and the Port Adelaide appealed the severity of the ban with Port chief executive, Keith Thomas saying, “It was certainly something that we prefer Andy not to do, clearly. And it’s a message that we have to got to send that you can’t touch umpires.
“But we would simply argue there has to be some consideration given to the impact and the intention of the action.”
The appeal was unsuccessful with Moore’s three-week ban reiterated.
I saw the incident in question on a TV news segment whilst watching with my nine-year-old son.
He wanted to know why Moore had been given three weeks for what he thought was a very minor thing.
With his junior footy season starting next weekend I gave him a dissertation as to why you must respect the umpire and not argue with him or make contact with him.
He understood what I was talking about.
I was then lying in bed on Saturday morning when my son came running into the bedroom to ask me to get up and have a look at something on the television.
When I was ensconced in front of the TV he pressed play on the Foxtel IQ remote.
He was watching the ESPN highlights of the European Champions League quarter-final between his beloved Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid.
What he then preceded to show me was a high boot challenge from Atlético’s winger Arda Turan on Sergio Ramos.
In essence the challenge looked to be fairly innocuous but according to German referee Felix Brych it warranted a yellow card – and that is where things got interesting.
Given that Turan had received a yellow card in the 31st minute of the match, the second card meant he was on his way to the sideline in the 76th minute with scores locked at 0-0.
The first leg had ended in a scoreless draw and tensions on the pitch were high.
When Brych retrieved the yellow card from his pocket and started to raise it above his head Atlético captain Gabrielle Fernandez grabbed the referee’s left arm and attempted to drag it down.
All the time several other Atlético players were voicing their disenchantment. Brych took a few backward steps to break away from the enraged Atlético players before raising a red card.
My son and I both debated the legitimacy of the second yellow card with us in agreement that the decision was harsh.
The two commentators voicing over the highlights agreed it was a little severe.
One said that to the letter of the laws it probably was a card but in such circumstances the referee should have exercised some common sense.
Our lounge room discussion then turned to Gabi’s grabbing of the referee’s arm.
My son wanted to know why one player got a three-game suspension for manhandling an umpire in one football code while in the other no one even made mention of a similar occurrence.
It made me stop and think before responding that I felt the umpire/referee should not be touched by players.
But just what should be seen as acceptable behaviour towards match officials and where should the line should be drawn?
Was Moore rightly penalised?
Was Gabi’s action out of line and deserving of sanction?
Your thoughts?
Max
Guest
Never touch a ref/umpire full stop otherwise you get into these arguments about severity of touching. You sound like NRL Jimmy Smith on Fox who said that if an NRL coach had hit a fan like Clarkson (Alasatiar not Jeremy) then they would have got an immediate ban. Yeah right as if NRL can lecture anyone on foul play.(on or off the field)..
Perry Bridge
Guest
Kinda struggling with the 'relevance' on this one? Surprised Phil Carmen and his head butt on a field umpire didn't get a mention too. Being 2015 - these incidents aren't just 30 years ago - - they're sooo last century!!! Certainly for Burke - his suspension killed off any chance of a career. And deservedly so for what he did.
Perry Bridge
Guest
"Like" And so - we need to place it under the "Australian Football" tab. Again though - in Glenn trying to write a cross sports discussion piece - the lack of a suitable cross codes tab (would it work under 'other sports'?) means the article has to reside somewhere. Given that - it's just plain silly for anyone to get A.) overly defensive of the code in which tab it is and B.) be overly critical of references to other codes. What I do see is - in Australia in particular - where we have not just domestic leagues - but we have a 99.9% domestic code (AFL) - where a totally Australian culture/approach can be developed/employed. The flip side are largely international codes where even were the domestic league to follow one approach - the international examples are tending to be flawed (soccer in particular). The way this plays out down through the levels where in many cases kids grow up exposed to a variety of sports both in participation and spectating (or video gaming!!). It's easy to see mixed messages are the rule of the day. Strong domestic leadership is required. The AFL took effectively a zero tolerance approach including that players have a responsibility to be aware of the presence of the umpire such that accidental contact was often deemed player negligence and therefore punishable. And - the result is that it so rarely happens now that accidents do seem more avoidable than some give credit.
Lroy
Guest
I think your referring to a reserves game in 1979... a Collingwood player jumped the fence, punched a fan, then pushed the ref over... forget his name.. but the commentary is classic... ''Get him off..""
RIP_Enke
Guest
touching a ref should be an automatic yellow for me
RIP_Enke
Guest
nice Messi is the consummate professional, that is part to his appeal, that he just gets on with things, as he is very talented and chances will come. we really need our refs to be full time professionals.
Mr Football
Roar Rookie
LOL.I like your sense of humor Eddie.
BES
Guest
any touching of the ref is a send off and a minimum 1 game ban - period.
MFairPlay
Roar Guru
As a fan of both codes and Port Adelaide the Moore situation did make me ponder the same issue. I think Moore did deserve the penalty but it was very harsh considering the circumstances. With the world game I do appreciate the respect between the players and referees. Last night was a great example of acceptable physical contact; it's hard to judge without audio but it looked as if referee Michael Oliver and Chelsea playmaker Eden Hazard misunderstood each other, once they found level ground everything was symbolised to be okay when the two shared a little high five.
The artist formerly known as Punter
Guest
You struggle to understand culture. Telling Bill that his wife is giving him cookies every time you sleep with his wife for the reason you are overweight is just not accepted in some cultures.
michael steel
Guest
I've always had a view that players who abuse and intimidate the umpire are only doing it to compensate for their inadequacies as a player whether it's a bad game or habitual. Being on a football field has every player in the spotlight of the crowd and I have always felt those who abuse the umpire or referee are getting the attention with their mouth which they don't get from their skills. Abusing officials is also contrary to being a team player. Of course some teams have abusive coaches so if that's the case the coach is leading by a bad example. Basically, I have no time for abusive players,coaches or supporters.
Dean
Guest
Simulation, yelling at the ref and petulant behaviour of the players are the main themes brought up by my friends who casually watch soccer and speak down about it. All things that could be mostly solved by the governing body with a bit of backbone with Union as a fine example of a sport where the ref is barely mentioned during the match commentary. I still think the HAL is the better league to watch out of any others in this regard, though. Compared to ACL, UCL or Sth American football matches, our HAL players are fearless gladiators. The medical rooms in Sth America must just be a room full of water bottles, magic spray cans and stretchers.
Dean
Guest
That's the current problem with soccer's rules. Refs get the blame for soft, technical penalties that change the game so never pay them. The rules are imbalanced that a shirt tug 1m inside the box will change the game completely, while just 1m away, outside the box, will most likely not change much.
Roarfan
Guest
It has become a huge problem in the HAL as well. After nearly every incident, one or more players are in the referees face and continue to carry on, even when told to move away. It is quite obvious from the body language and lip reading that these 'discussions' are far from friendly and often quite vicious and intimidating. Mind you, what do you expect with certain coaches acting in a totally unacceptable manner as well, with the assistant or 4th referee being on the receiving end of abuse and sometimes copping a shower of spittle in the process. We pride ourselves on being the # beautiful game, but very often that is far from reality. What should be implemented is a first warning, making it very clear that if the player or coach doesn't respond within say 5 seconds. he'll get a final warning and if he doesn't stop immediately after that, he'll get a yellow. If he is stupid enough to continue after being shown the yellow, give him a second, which means a red. Obviously the referee must make it very clear to both teams before the game that he is going to enforce that rule and after a few players have been disciplined that way, the practice will be nipped in the bud very quickly. The only one allowed to ask the referee for an explanation (in a civil and respectful manner) should be the team captain and once he has been given an explanation he is should be subject to the same rule. The Match Review panel should also take an interest in some of the real severe cases. Can we introduce this for this year's final series please?
bryan
Guest
I think anyone who invades the personal space of a referee should be red carded. You are a professional Sportsman, act professionally
pjm
Roar Rookie
Captains are mostly chosen for their proximity to the ref, that's why a forward or scrum half is nearly always the captain.
spruce moose
Guest
Actually, I'm going to pre-emptively raise my hand and apologise for I have confused the incident with another. Sorry.
spruce moose
Guest
You mean the Greg Williams pushing the umpire with such force he lost balance and fell off his feet incident? That was a harsh penalty eh?
Ian
Guest
I wouldn't be too upset if in soccer when the ref was being crowded by players arguing a decision if he just pulled out the red card and sent all of them off. Will never happen but should.
Ian
Guest
how did you come to that conclusion from that comment?