1. Refrain from coaching on the field
As the referee, you should never coach when on the field. This usually happens when parents are refereeing their child.s game. Referees are supposed to be neutral. Don.t tell the players where to stand, where to pass the ball, or cheer for your child.s team or for your child...even if your child scores a goal. Maintain neutrality during a game.
2. Be mindful of the time
Games are scheduled throughout the day. While it may not always be possible to start the game on time, due to various circumstances, do not stop the clock on .quarter breaks. or substitutions. Each half has a designated time, from 10 minutes up to 45 minutes. The clock does not stop in AYSO. It continues to run throughout the half. That means no stopping for breaks (except U5-6), injuries or because the teams fail to return to the field in a timely manner. Do not add time at the end of the half for any reason.
3. Be a referee, not a policy maker
Properly trained referees should adhere to the Laws of the Game. These are very clearly defined. There is also a Modified Rules of the Game document for the U5-6 and U7-8 that is provided by the region for the younger age groups. Referees do not need to add, modify or change the Laws, read them, study them and learn them. Remember that it is for the children.
One comment from a referee in our region recently was .I am the referee, I can do what I want.. This comment was made in the context of a closely played match, where one team did not agree with the referee.s decisions. This is not way to handle a tough situation. Follow the Laws of the Game.
Another example is a referee not allowing a player to wear eye glasses during a game. This is not a rule, not is it to be enforced. When the referee was corrected by parents on the decision, the referee would not allow the player to play while wearing the glasses anyway. In Region 1447, again, we follow the Laws of the Game, not .house rules. or individual referee decisions.
Feel free to report any situations where you may need clarification.
4. Coaches handle their own rosters
AYSO mandates that all player play at least 50% of a game. AYSO Region 1447 requires that coaches play all players 3/4 of a game, prior to playing any player the entire game. In AYSO everyone plays. We all know teams, and other soccer leagues, where the coach plays the best players the entire game and the less experienced players sit on the bench. This is not AYSO philosophy.
We do not ask, require or recommend that in Region 1447 that referees be in charge of player time. Coaches submit a card prior to the start of the game. it is not the responsibility of the referee to enforce player time. If a referee discovers a problem, then a report can be made to the Regional Commissioner and Referee Administrator. The reason for this is because some teams may have circumstances where a player played the entire game a week before and now the coach plans to sit the player for some reason. There are various situations that can.t all be addressed, needlesstosay, it is the coach.s responsibility to assure player game time, not the referee.
5. Don't whistle the ball out of play everytime
Referees should only whistle on appropriate restarts and to stop play as needed. The whistle is not needed for ball out of play on the touch lines and goal lines, unless it is necessary to stop play.
Some coaches complain that their players are trained to wait for the whistle and want the referee to whistle everytime the ball goes out of play, or in the goal. This is not necessary. Soccer is meant to be a free flowing game. A whistle on every ball out of play would be disrupting. A trained referee should use hand signals, rather than the whistle for most restarts.
6. Referee Hand Signals need improvement
Referees should use hand signals for throw-ins, goal kicks, corner kicks and goals scored. The Laws of the Game actually require this, and it really is something that referees should be doing, even in U5-U8 matches.
The arms signals are simple. For throw-ins point the direction of attack for the team that has gets the throw in.
For goal kicks in U7 & U8, point to the goal area. For goal kicks in U5 & U6, point to the spot on the goal line that's midway between the pop-up goal and the corner on the side of the field where the ball went out of play.
For corner kicks, point to the appropriate corner.
For a goal scored, the proper way for you to signal a valid goal is to point your arm toward the center circle. That signifies that the restart is a kick-off.
It is also important to reinforce the arm signals with verbal cues: e.g. "It's a goal kick for the Blue team" or "It's a throw-in for the Red team".
7. Double Touch
This is an aspect of the game where we as a region need improvement. On restart kicks or throw-ins, players may not play the ball until it has been touched by another player, thereby eliminating the double touch. In our region, this is most commonly seen on the kick off.
This is a simple way to remember the rule, no one can touch the ball twice in a row on a restart. There are a few exceptions to this rule. Keep it simple. Play should be restarted.
8. Substitutions - not break time
In Region 1447, for the U5-6 teams, this is a little water break . 1-2 minutes.
At the older age groups, the teams should never leave the field. Players may wish to go to the touch line for a drink, but this is not a water/snack break. Coaches should call out the players that are to be substituted, possibly switch the goalkeeper, but all too often, coaches pull their players off the field for a break.
Remember that the clock does not stop during substitutions. Players go off the field and players come on the field, that is all that should happen during the substitutions. Our players are losing playing time each week. We need to improve this aspect of our game.
9. Don't interact with spectators
Even though AYSO is all volunteer, at times, spectators (parents, family or friends of players) may forget that this is about the players and demand the referee make calls in their team.s favor, they may even disagree with the referee and be vocal about it.
At no time should a referee ever interact with a spectator. If there is a problem that needs to be addressed, the referee should approach the coach. It then becomes the coach.s responsibility to deal with the spectator. The referee may need to stop the game in extreme circumstances to address the coach, but never the spectator.
The moment that the referee interacts with the spectators, he/she has forgotten the players and is focusing on his/herself. Please ignore, as much as possible the spectators disagreements with you referee style. Problems with spectators should be documented in the game report and reported to the Division Comissioner and Referee Administrator.
When tempers flare, nothing good can be accomplished. If the referee can.t control him/herself, then how can we expect players to do likewise. Violence, in any form, from spectator to referee, referee to spectator, etc etc will not be tolerated in Region 1447.
10. Trained Referees
Each team is required to have a trained referee. A trained referee is a referee that has attended the training and has been certified. A well meaning parent, uncle, sibling, or even a coach may not know all the Laws of the Game. Just because someone played soccer as a child does not qualify them to referee.
It is the coach.s job to recruit a referee volunteer for each team. Region 1447 recommends that each team have more that 1 trained referee. Since all referees are volunteers, there are occasions that having additional referees is necessary.
We still have games that are without trained referees. In these situations, it is the coach.s responsibility to referee the game. All volunteers must be CVP certified by federal law, and Region 1447 requires all volunteers to be certified. Coaches should not allow a non certified, well meaning person, to be involved games. The safety of the children is a priority.
