The first round of 2016 saw considerable criticism towards the actions of several A-League referees after a raft of mistakes.
In both Central Coast Mariners’ match against Wellington Phoenix and the Western Sydney Wanderers’ draw against Adelaide United were there well publicised incidents that went seemingly unnoticed by referees Kris Griffith-Jones and Ben Williams respectively. Griffiths-Jones notably failed to properly punish Central Coast’s Roy O’Donovan for a head-butt on Phoenix player Manny Muscat during his side’s 3-1 win on New Year’s Eve as well as the build-up to the incident, where Muscat was seen elbowing O’Donovan. Griffiths-Jones, by only producing a yellow card for the incident, failed to uphold the rules of the game, which dictate that any violent conduct – including head-butting – warrants a straight red card.
READ MORE: Central Coast Mariners sign duo, O’Donovan to face Disciplinary Committee
Griffiths-Jones’ mistake would later be shown by the FFA when the Match Review Panel would cite both O’Donovan and Muscat but most notably O’Donovan, who was cited under the ‘Obvious Error’ clause of the A-League Disciplinary Regulations, which basically means Griffiths-Jones was in the wrong for only dealing a yellow card to O’Donovan.
But it was Ben Williams who drew more attention to himself in regards to his actions during and after the Western Sydney and Adelaide match on New Year’s Day. Williams missed two obvious penalty calls during the match, which ended in a 0-0 draw. However, what was even more notable than missing the two calls was Williams going on live TV and admitting to making those mistakes after the match was over. In his interview with Fox Sports, Williams went over why he felt the calls were not warranted but still admitted he was in the wrong.
Williams is currently one of three full-time professional referees in Australia, alongside Chris Beath and Jarred Gillett, both of whose matches went with major controversy this past weekend. The three have been professional since September 2015, which marked a major moment in Australian football as the FFA attempts to forge a more retentive pathway for referees in Australia. However, the fact that a full-time referee can seemingly make so many mistakes has attracted the ire not only of fans but also of managers, with Sydney FC manager Graham Arnold calling for more referees or even a new potential video review system, something that has been hotly discussed for years both internationally and domestically.
READ MORE: Sydney FC boss Graham Arnold calls for goal-line referees in the A-League
In December, David Gallop put forward Australia’s name as one that is willing to trial a new video replay system that is currently before the International Football Association Board – the board that changes the FIFA Laws of the Game. This newest system is the latest in a long line of developments towards making sure officials are more correct and less culpable towards making crucial mistakes. The most notable development has been that of goal-line technology, allowing for a more specific analysis of whether a ball has fully crossed the goal-line. The system has been implemented at international level and in domestic leagues such as the Bundesliga and the English Premier League but it is yet to be implemented in the A-League.
Another development has been the addition of two more assistant referees at either end of the field, to provide a backup incase the head referee misses any incidents or needs help in deciding a ghost-goal type decision. This system has been used in the UEFA Champions League and Euro 2012 but has had a much more mixed response than standard goal-line technology.
However the biggest issue in implementing both of these systems would be their cost and it is something that the FFA would need to consider. In 2013 it was stated by MLS commissioner Don Garber that to implement GoalControl – a German brand of goal-line technology – would cost upwards of $260,000 per stadium and a further $3,900 for each match. The top two divisions of the German Bundesliga also rejected goal-line technology at the start of 2014 for financial reasons, before eventually relenting in December 2014 after the league picked the cheaper Hawk-Eye system.
These costs are something that many A-League clubs may not be able to afford and could cause significant issues further down the road as more clubs move in and out of the league. However the option of more referees is also worth looking at and here again the costs add up once two more assistants are added to the mix. A 2013 article by the Advertiser suggested that the average A-League match – a central referee and three assistants – would cost approximately $3,500 per match, resulting in a total of $17,500 per round of the A-League.
Just with the addition of two more assistant referees per match, this would balloon the cost of referee fees per match to $4,900 per match and $24,500 per round. While that does not seem like a large amount per round, the fact is those payments would add up, with an approximate $24,500 per round putting the FFA back upwards of $660,000 per season just to pay referees. It should also be noted that these approximations are based on the 2013 pay of A-League referees before they signed a new contract in late 2013, which saw them have an approximate 19% pay rise across all competitions.
The FFA need to decide what is more important for the growth of the league: having referees be correct more often or work on other more crucial elements of the league as a whole. Referees are always going to make mistakes no matter the technology available to them – human error is a natural element of us all and simply throwing more money at the problem to bring in technology or more eyes will not solve it entirely. While it would be a great idea to implement goal-line technology or more referees, the fact of the matter is that in the short-term the money could be better spent elsewhere in the league.
While referees only appear to be noticed when they make a huge mistake, the FFA should not yet be racing to the panic button and implementing costly procedures just to save themselves a little bit of face. At a time when the FFA is putting out many fires across the league, from low attendances, to issues with player payments and club licenses, the issue with referees should not be as high as many would like you to believe, and although it is an issue that is worth fixing for the enjoyment of our league, it is one that can afford to wait a little while before being solved.
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