I have a friend. Let’s call him John.
John was brought up in a family that loves rugby league. When he was younger, he played footy, mainly on the wing because he was very quick. He even managed to score his fair share of tries.
But as he got older, John was no longer as interested in playing footy, he wanted to be involved in the game in a different way.
So he traded having the footy in his hand to having a whistle in his hand and decided to try his hand at refereeing instead.
Refereeing is a passion that John has had for over a decade now. Slowly but surely, John has moved his way up through the refereeing ranks with plenty of hard work and determination. Refereeing is about a lot more than just understanding some very complicated rules. It also requires high levels of fitness, commitment and also means you give up plenty of weekends.
Here’s the thing about John though. He is a good referee. So good in fact that he is now refereeing in New South Wales Cup.
John could potentially progress further and be a first-grade referee down the track, but has made a decision that he does not want to and that he is happy to remain in New South Wales Cup.
And how can you possibly blame him?
This year, referees have been under constant scrutiny. They have been the most consistent talking point and have been subjected to the most criticism across the board.
(Photo by Mark Evans/Getty Images)
I would say that this constant focus and harassment is beginning to border on bullying and with the personal vendetta that some fans and influential media commentators have against referees, why on earth would you want to be one.
We’ve seen it flair up again this weekend and for me, it’s getting to a point where it is exceptionally embarrassing.
Peter Sterling said on Triple M on the weekend that “the game is harder to watch as a spectator as it has ever been.”
That article also quoted the high number of penalties being blown per game (approximately 18/19) and looked to blame referees for that.
There was no mention of the players that are behaving in a way that is contrary to the rules, putting referees in a position where they need to blow a penalty.
On Channel 9, there was also discussion following the games on Friday night.
Paul Vautin suggested that the referees were “out of touch.” Then it was that the referees don’t have an understanding of the effort that the players put in (do the commentators have an understanding of how much effort the referees put in?).
Later in the same segment it was acknowledged that the number of penalties aren’t the referees fault, but instead it is because of the direction they are being given from up top.
I’m confused.
But it continued.
Andrew Johns then made a comment about referees blowing penalties that really should be let go because they do not have any influence on direct play.
I question whether this would add another level of complexity to an already complex job with referees being placed in a position where they need to make a call about when an infringement is having a direct impact on play and when it is not (and then would allow other players to do the incorrect thing, just because they aren’t directly involved in play).
Then there were further tweets from journalists lamenting that referees were destroying the game.
For some journalists, this seems to be a fun game at the moment and it’s becoming exceptionally tired, boring and predictable.
(Photo by Mark Kolbe/Getty Images)
So who is to blame here? Is it the referees? Or is it the people giving them the instructions? Or is it the players that continue to do the wrong thing and give away penalties?
I would say it is the latter and interestingly, we don’t see targeted harassment of particular players that give away plenty of penalties, just the odd article here or there.
Now I don’t know about any of you, but I have enjoyed this year of footy more than any other in recent years (keep in mind that my team is at the bottom of the ladder too).
For the first time in many years, we are seeing a different type of top eight featuring some new teams like the New Zealand Warriors, South Sydney Rabbitohs and the St George Illawarra Dragons.
We have seen the emergence of some fresh talent including Viliame Kikau, Kalyn Ponga, Victor Radley and Jamaayne Isaako.
We have seen some players return to form like John Sutton and Greg Inglis and have also watched some teams that we thought would be in the finals, collapse, like the Parramatta Eels and the North Queensland Cowboys.
I’ve also really relished seeing an increased use of the sin bin and have also really enjoyed watching referees crack down on players and teams that have repeated infringements.
I find it incredible that there are some people in the media who profess to love the game, but who do little other than complain about it.
Referees are always going to make some wrong calls. They are human. Just like our players make errors.
The very obvious impact of all this dribble about how referees are ruining the game is that it alienates and upsets fans. It has already started to.
I’ve noticed particularly on Twitter that more and more fans are beginning to call out journalists who unfairly harass referees and are getting very tired of the same old narrative that some very stale journalists are trying to spin.
But a less obvious consequence, and potentially a more dangerous one, is that this inappropriate level of harassment is potentially discouraging the next generation of referees from coming through.
Being a referee has never been a popular gig, but the way we’re heading now, I wonder why anyone would put their hand up for the job in the first place.
Alfred
Guest
Greenberg keeps on about how close the RL games are compared to RU and AFL. Wouldn't you think the refs would get the hint?
David
Guest
Hi Mary, This is an excellent article, however it only scratches the surface of the issue. I referee touch football, and am on a mission to try and change the way coaches, spectators, parents and players view refereeing. If you do not have a referee, you do not have a game. It is endemic in Australia to criticize Referee's and Referee's and supposed to have a thick skin to be able to handle it! I dispute this and refuse to accept anything other than complete respect when I am refereeing. That is what I treat the players with, and demand the same in return. I am a bit older, (nearing 50), and do this more from a point of view of changing behaviors for the next generation to deal with, because as you correctly point out, who will do this in the future if things continue as they are. People such as Gus Gould, Peter Sterling, Paul Vautin and Andrew Johns need to be made aware of the damage they do, and I cannot tell you how happy I am to see such a good article as yours to point this out. They are in a position where they influence a very large number of people and the views others have come directly from them. I do respect their knowledge of the game, but have thought for a long time that the treatment by them towards referee's is nothing short of disgraceful. Change starts at the top.
john ferris
Guest
Spot on. I'm sick of Phil Gould and the Ch 9 team whinging about penalties. I love that refs are finally stopping the grapple and rubbish offside play. Best game of the year was Melbourne being penalised 18 times. Its the players and specificcally players like Cameron Smith always offside, grappling, wrestling getting in the way etc. They are the problem, not the refs.
TheEducatedEel
Guest
Why do all the expert analysts & commentators agree that the in-field direction of the game is the wrong direction? Are they all wrong? Are the social media mafia right? I as a viewer of the game for over 30 years, am struggling to watch each game given the over-officiating of largely subjective indiscretions. It can be remedied....look at origin. Did anyone complain about that game?
Mary Konstantopoulos
Expert
I like this idea!
Mary Konstantopoulos
Expert
Forty Twenty, Sterlo is absolutely entitled to his opinion and TBH he is not one of those commentators that seems to talk about the referees all the time. I more highlighted his comment because I fundamentally disagree with it - I am thoroughly enjoying this season, but of course that is only my view. :)
Mary Konstantopoulos
Expert
Dutski, thanks for your comment! I actually think we are in the majority... the minority just seems to be making A LOT of noise at the moment.
Tim Buck 3
Roar Rookie
I was only joking when I said that but I had forgotten that the NRL had actually tried to kick them out. They would've played in the NSW cup with Newtown and Norths but they have too many fans to relegate them to the state cup as the NRL found out. Souths were a part of the dark side when they voted to bring in Cronulla-Sutherland to cut the number of juniors that were making St.George invincible. That and having Col Pearce, a Souths fan, as a referee gave Souths a few more premierships.
Muzz
Guest
I think it has to do with how poorly all the QLD teams are doing this season including their origin side. My mate VOR is beside himself.
DP Schaefer
Guest
Good points Mushi.
DP Schaefer
Guest
Well done Mary
DP Schaefer
Guest
Mike - Exactly. Well called and I totally agree. This is apparent when some captains go up to the ref and ask about penalty counts and why they are so disadvantaged. Thus this led (a couple of years ago) to the ref 'evaning up' of penalties. It's interesting when our cricket captain gets the rounds of the kitchen for pre-planned ball tampering yet coaches and players are not condemmed by commentators for pre-planned acts of deliberate cheating.
Kris Swales
Expert
Three syllable words, of course! They must’ve all learned “outstanding!” and “middle third” in the pre-season, though that doesn’t explain the outbreak of “hundred percent”.
Tom Rock
Expert
Braith has enough on his plate. He only started learning three syllable words this year. You can’t expect the man to learn the rules in addition to his already bulging workload
Buttery
Guest
Mary, I am sick to death of the commentators on all media outlets whinging & whining about the referees handing out penalties, they keep saying the fans are complaining whereas the only fans they would see would be on the ceiling of their houses, not one of them has said the players should wake up, how easy is it to get off the tackled player, keep your hand off the ball in tackle, keep in line with the ref & not strip the ball.
jewboy
Guest
Mmmm….have to say I've heard the boys on Fox criticize the referees at times and get it wrong. Think they all might be tarred with the same brush but just wear different hats Paul....be a boring old world if everone agreed with each other all the time.
Buttery
Guest
Balmain weren't kicked out of the comp, they & Wests were given $8million to merge, which they did, Souths were kicked out of the comp but fought the dark side & won.
Paul
Roar Guru
I much prefer to listen to the Fox guys and think the NZ guys are pretty good as well. Are they perfect, not by any means, but they are easier on the ear and way less strident about issues. The quality of commenting by Channel 9 was summed up by Gould's comments prior to the referee making a decision about the Mitchell no-try. He was utterly convinced he was right and there was no way he was going to change his mind...... till the cameras clearly showed Mitchell didn't ground the ball. What did Gould do - said nothing for the next 5 minutes because everyone knew he'd made a goose of himself. All of the Channel 9 guys have the same disease - they really believe every word that come out of their mouth about Rugby League (including the denigration of referees) just has to be right. Sure they played the game at levels I could only dream of, but that doesn't make their opinion valid if they're living in the past or set in their ways. Most of these blokes are exactly that and they do nothing to enhance the game, which should be their role
db
Guest
The commentators on Fox are quite confused at times. Matt Nable and cohorts complained over the weekend when a team was awarded a penalty. Their complaint was the team was on a roll and the referee shouldn't have blown the penalty straight away. One minute later the opposing team from their own try-line makes a break and get to the half-way line. The defense is in disarray and the referee allows the roll to continue in spite of what looked like an infringement in the play-the-ball. The commentators all complained about the penalty not being blown straight away. They argued both sides of an argument in the space of 60 seconds without realising their hypocrisy.
Rob
Guest
He hates the players being addressed on a first name bases. They shouldn't need an explanation he used a hand signal and called out the infringement when he blew the whistle. One of his great memories is a GF when a player gave him a gob full early in the game and he marched him 10m, he continued and dad kept marching he stopped after about 50m in front of the post by then the captain had grabbed the player by the collar and gave his own player a gob full telling him to shut his mouth before it cost them the game. He doesn't remember blowing a penalty again. He said nothing. He has plenty of great stories about comments made between himself and players and between players on the field. Gomersal was a skinny touch judge from Mackay when Dad blew the whistle. Dad referred to him as Grasshopper the Show Pony. See even dad put shit on the Ref sometimes.