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A couple of weeks ago, I went through the suggested changes to Fifa’s laws of the game.
There were several and most passed.
Which brings me nicely to one of those changes that came into force yesterday for teams whose leagues finish around this time.
For all other leagues, the changes come into effect only at the start of their leagues next year.
During a league game in Holland recently, a rather unusual incident occurred. It was a fourth-division game between Harkemase Boys and HSV Hoek.
There was a goalmouth scramble and the referee felt he needed to be close to the action. But he was too close.
At one point, he was inside the 5.5m box and that’s where the problem arose. The ball bobbed around, hit the referee on the shin and went into the net.
Now, before reading any further, what would you have done?
I’ll give you the answer further down.
Jerome Damon
You remember last week’s column in which I mentioned that not one match official would represent South Africa at the Fifa Under-20 World Cup in Poland, and how disappointed I was about that?
I said the only representative from South Africa was Jerome Damon in his capacity as a match analyst.
I didn’t have enough space to complete what his duties were and I outlined what the morning session entailed. Here’s the rest:
Afternoon:
He presents different topics, such as positioning and reading the game, penalty area incidents and tactical fouls.
Evening:
He watches the match and does match analysis.
Such is Damon’s standing within the game that he has now been employed as a full-time referee development officer for Fifa and is one of only two in Africa responsible for the development of match officials for Fifa.
He is responsible for overseeing referee departments to ensure they are in line with the goals and targets of both CAF and Fifa. I make no apology for giving such detail on Damon.
I take great pride that I first discovered him in 1996 at a Safa Under-17 tournament in Johannesburg. Since then, I have been his coach and mentor.
It’s proof of what can be achieved by anyone if they are prepared to put in the work as he has done.
Well done, Jerome. You are a credit to yourself and your country.
The answer to the above incident – did you get it right? Not many did, I would guess.
Recap – the ball hit the referee and went into the goal. Decision? Goal.
You might not agree and you might say it’s unfair, but, as the law stood then, that was the correct decision.
The law said that if the ball hit the crossbar, upright, corner flag or the referee and remained in play, play would continue.
And, yes, even if that meant a goal – as in this case.
There was some consternation following the decision, but, thankfully, the referee stood his ground and clearly knew the law on this matter.
My advice to him and all referees is to not get too close to play.
You can see much more from a reasonable distance, plus you will have a wider view of proceedings. Hopefully, he will learn from the experience.
That, however, has changed since yesterday, when, in a similar instance, a goal would not stand.
Well, did you get it right?
Happy whistling!
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. Send your questions for the Hanging judge to sports@citypress.co.za
