One of the correspondents to ‘Ask David Downs’ last year asked David if he could find any details about his father who was a referee in the Reading area before the last war.
As referees are not David’s thing he passed the enquiry to me. I spent some time looking at the minutes of all pre-war meetings of the Reading Referees’ Association but could find no mention of the writer’s father. However, I did come across an interesting item in the minutes of the monthly meeting held on Tuesday 10th January 1933. There was a large attendance, the minutes said, to listen to Mr Leppard, Secretary of the London Society. Before he got up to speak however, there was a proposal by Mr Charles Kearse, that the Association presented five or six certificates to the best club linesmen in local leagues. This was carried unanimously and these awards, although slightly changed, are still made today. This year’s presentations will be made in a couple of week’s time at the Reading RA AGM.
Of course the term linesman, has been conveyed to the dustbin of history (well almost), today they are called
'assistant referees'. The method of selecting who receives the awards has also changed. Originally, members of the association had to send in a letter recommending any club official who had run the line for them with some distinction.
When the association adopted my proposals in 1966 for a
'Fair Play Award' for local clubs, I also took the opportunity of changing the marking system for club linesmen. Each member of the association at the beginning of each season is issued with a form on which they mark out of ten, how competent and useful each club assistant has been. These marks are averaged at the end of the season and awards made to the top three.
Football fans who watch only professional football may not be aware that in local football, neutral, qualified assistant referees are a rarity, instead under competition rules, the clubs have to provide the referee with someone who will run the line, or risk a fine. As perhaps to be expected, the quality and the commitment of those assistants varies enormously. Some are excellent, like those who receive their awards this month, others not so. Some clubs have regulars but others have to talk someone into taking the flag so there will be those who don’t want to do it and put little effort into it. Never up with play, poor signals.
Substitutes are likely to be lumbered with the flag these days, often disgruntled that they weren’t in the starting eleven and not best pleased that they have to undertake this duty instead. Then there are those who know better than the referee, despite probably never having read the laws and want to take over the game, flagging constantly and even shouting at the referee. What they have to understand is that under the laws they are only required to give indications. It is the referee who makes decisions.
Sadly as well there are those who are simply biased and never flag against their own team.
The Laws of the Game list seven duties for an assistant referee but most referees in local games will only ask club officials to undertake three of those duties; ball out of play, who is entitled to the throw-in or goal kick or corner kick and, often contentious, offside. The purpose of the awards is not only to recognise those club officials who give good support to the referee but also to encourage others to do better.
Few today will remember Charles Kearse, who was a wonderful character and a Football League referee but he would be delighted that his idea of recognising good club linesmen is still being carried out by Reading referees, seventy five years later
Dick Sawdon Smith
Back
To Contents
© R Sawdon Smith 2009