In his annual report Discipline Manager, Mike Fellows has thanked the local press and clubs themselves for playing vital roles in ensuring last season saw the lowest number of proven cases of assault on Match Officials since records began.
The BCFA Discipline Department dealt with 19 alleged assaults on Match Officials compared to 27 for the previous season. Of these 19 cases, 14 were found proven with 3 not proven and 2 reduced to a lesser charge.
Fellows has worked closely with the Birmingham Evening Mail for a number of seasons, with the Coventry Telegraph joining the campaign to “Respect the Ref” earlier this year.
“Both papers have highlighted specific cases of misconduct and have published a ‘Scroll of Dishonour’ where names of players found guilty along with the name of their club and league are there for everyone to see,” he said.
Fellows also acknowledged that publishing all sine-die and forthcoming player suspensions on birminghamfa.com along with the policy to avoid punishing clubs who assist and support a referee who is being subjected to an assault has also had a significant effect:
“There has been a noticeable increase in cases where Referees have stated that they have received assistance,” he commented. “In cases like that, the player involved has been solely responsible for the payment of any fine imposed.
This change in attitude has meant that fewer games have had to be abandoned too. Figures show that 68 games were prematurely stopped, 15 fewer than in the previous season.
Publishing lists on the internet has had a double effect, contributing to dramatically increase the number of players being charged with playing under suspension. Numbers rose from 44 in 2006-07 to 55 in 2007-08. This, combined with the continued development of a National Participant Database and a standard administration system across the country means that there are fewer places for banned players to hide.
Fellows stressed that Birmingham County FA’s zero tolerance approach to misconduct will continue and that there is still plenty of room for improvement:
“Whilst figures have fallen, over 50% of spectator misconduct can still be attributed to youth and child football. Even more disappointing is the fact that for the first time in three years we have also seen a slight rise in player misconduct in this age group.
“This is not acceptable and we are calling on everyone to play their part in driving down these statistics in the coming season.”
There are a number of ways Birmingham County FA is hoping to help address the problem. It will be helping deliver The FA’s “Respect” campaign within the grassroots game and continuing to promote programmes such as the Charter Standard and Fair Play Awards which aim to drive up standards and reward positive contributions.
A BCFA Panel consisting of experts from all aspects of the organisation has also offered to visit league meetings to highlight topics including discipline, welfare, referee and club development; outlining new projects that aim to help grassroots football, challenge poor behaviour and retain players and officials.
“Persistent offenders can also expect to be punished for giving the game a bad name,” added Fellows.
“Clubs are responsible for the conduct of their spectators – it is the club that is punished and not the individual team within that club.
“If a club has a poor disciplinary record they can expect substantive fines and the imposing of suspended punishments which will be implemented on further misconduct.
“Everyone should remember that no misconduct means more funds are available for clubs to spend on equipment and facilities so lets hope that we see an improvement in this area when the new season kicks off.”
Match Officials’ greater awareness of what is deemed an appropriate punishment is also attributed to the overall misconduct reported. Sending off and akin offences are up by 274 but cautions are down by 503.
“For example, if a player swears at a referee after being sent off they can expect to receive further charges rather than just grouping their behaviour in with the original incident,” Fellows explained.
“We are determined to ensure that the disciplinary process continues to work alongside the other areas of our work here at Birmingham County FA and that the majority that play the game in a positive, enjoyable atmosphere can reap the benefits of their involvement.” he concludes.