Football Dark Arts

What are the Dark Arts in soccer? This interesting book is the first-ever collection of 80 negative football tricks, traps and tips that are used by mischievous players, coaches and managers.

Here is the book description, which is found on Amazon websites:

How winners in football really win at football.

Football Dark Arts provides detailed knowledge about crafty, deceitful and outrageous gamesmanship that will help you and your team win matches.

For the first time anywhere, 80 tricks, traps and tips in soccer are collected together and presented in this book. These dark arts help give ultra-competitive managers and street-smart players a competitive edge that prevent their opponents from performing at their optimal level.

Masters of the dark arts know how to bend the rules, to deceive, to con, and ultimately to negatively affect their opponents. This book highlights the ugly, unpleasant and unsporting aspects of “The Beautiful Game”.

Whether you are a player, coach, match official, fan, commentator, journalist, medical doctor or club director, your best option is to read this book and understand the dark arts!

Proceeds from this book will go to the Common Goal fund to support football charities around the world.

If players, coaches and managers are using the Dark Arts to help them beat their opponents, then match officials should also be smart enough to be able to recognise and understand these negative actions. This book is an "eyeopener" into the real world of competitive football. Highly recommended.

Can a Referee's Name Influence His Appointment?

Ben Toner. Say the name again. Ben Toner.

Some people may hear the term "bent owner". In English slang the meaning of "bent" is to be dishonest. A dishonest owner.

This is not a reflection on the referee himself. Mr Toner merely has an unfortunate name that can be used to imply that a club owner is dishonest or corrupt. Recently, the owners of Blackpool were found guilty in the high court of "illegally stripping" the club of assets, and people have noticed this funny association.

Interestingly, the PGMOL decided to remove Ben Toner from the Blackpool vs Portmouth League One match and replace him with EPL referee Jon Moss. They cited that the reason for this was NOT because of the referee's name at the match, but because the match itself had become higher profile due to the high court's verdict. In the end, the third-tier match had an attendance of 5,032 and very little media coverage.

Perhaps Ben Toner should amend his name to Benjamin Toner or Benny Toner? Would that help?

Take home message: If you are a referee and you also have a funny name, you may need to think about changing your name. Does anyone know any funny referee names?

There is a player in Hong Kong who is called "Linesman". Imagine the reaction of the match officials, when Lineman's teammates call his name!!


Reference

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/nov/10/referee-ben-toner-dropped-backpool-oystons

Referee Ben Toner loses Blackpool game after Oystons court verdict

• Jon Moss takes over at Bloomfield Road due to ‘increased attention’
• Ben Toner’s name caused amusement following ruling against Oystons

  

 

Friday 10 November 2017 17.27 GMT

The referee Ben Toner has been taken off Blackpool’s League One match against Portsmouth, days after the majority owner, the Oystons, were found by a high court judge to have operated an “illegitimate stripping” of the Lancashire club.

Given the findings against the Oystons, Toner’s name had caused some amusement on social media. However the EFL said he had been replaced by a more senior official only because of the “increased scrutiny” on the match at Blackpool.

 

On Monday Owen Oyston and his son Karl were ordered by Justice Marcus Smith to pay £31m to buy out the minority shareholder Valeri Belokon because of “fundamental breaches” of their duties as directors. Yesterday they put the club up for sale.

After discussions between the EFL and PGMOL, the referees’ association, it was decided Toner should be replaced by Jon Moss, one of the elite Premier League officials. As the body that appoints all match officials it was the PGMOL rather than the EFL which made the choice.

An EFL spokesman said: “As a result of the increased attention surrounding this weekend’s League One fixture between Blackpool and Portsmouth, PGMOL [Professional Game Match Officials Limited] has determined it would be appropriate for a select group 1 referee to take charge of proceedings at Bloomfield Road.

Rational Ref: Genuine refereeing howlers are unforgivable

Genuine refereeing howlers are unforgivable, but it's important to know the difference

Errors in applying the laws of the game should be punished

• 

Referees are judged harshly, especially when they make a wrong call, but it's important to recognise when the referee is genuinely at fault. Photo: AFP

 

Not all refereeing mistakes are equal; some are more equal than others. So can soccer lovers distinguish between honest mistakes and the inexcusable?

Many howlers such as incorrect handballs, offsides and penalties occur naturally as a consequence of human error, but unfortunately they obtain huge media exposure when in the English Premier League. If we cut through all the noise, vitriol and bias, many of these decisions are forgivable and only a handful are indefensible.

The unacceptable was Jan Vertonghen being adjudged offside when the Tottenham Hotspur defender should have been celebrating his second goal against Sunderland during the final seconds of the match.  

Replays clearly showed Jan Vertonghen to be inside his own half as he ran clear to score a disallowed goal

Offsides are straightforward black-and-white judgment calls and assistant referees get them more right than wrong. These are genuinely honest mistakes, although referee assessors will still give ARs poor marks for judging them wrong.

However, the decision against Vertonghen was not a judgment call. Technically, it was an error in law, and referees know this is the worst kind of mistake they can commit.

 

Technical errors that involve incorrect application of the laws is tantamount to being declared incompetent and unfit for purpose. Vertonghen was in his own half when the ball was played to him by his teammate. He cannot be in an offside position, no matter what else has occurred.

Assistant referee Stuart Burt should have been rooted at the halfway line because his main task is to keep in line with the second-last defender or the ball.

Since the Sunderland goalkeeper Costel Pantilimon had gone up for his team's corner, there was no second-last defender in Sunderland's half during Spurs' counterattack and obviously the ball was way behind the halfway line when it was passed to Vertonghen. At the halfway line, Burt would have realised he was facing a no-offside situation. We can only assume he panicked and flagged.

The most infamous error in law was the "three-card trick" by former EPL referee Graham Poll when he gave Croatia's Josip Simunic a hat-trick of cautions in the same match during the 2006 World Cup.
English referee Graham Poll made possibly the worst howler in World Cup history when he booked Croatia's Josip Simunic three times before sending him off at the 2006 World Cup. Photo: AP
Asia's top referee, Ravsham Irmatov, made an unbelievable blunder at the 2013 Confederations Cup when Italy played Brazil. During a corner kick, Italy forward Mario Balotelli was hauled down by a defender and Irmatov blew his whistle and pointed to the spot.

However, moments later the ball reached Italy's Giorgio Chiellini, who promptly scored. Unfathomably, Irmatov changed his mind and awarded the goal, which is a major error in law.
Although indefensible, confident referees are chastened by such harrowing experiences and return stronger.

Irmatov quickly bounced back at last year's World Cup to set the record for refereeing the most number of World Cup matches and this year became AFC Referee of the Year for the fifth time.

In contrast, errors of judgment are simply honest mistakes. Anthony Taylor's incorrect yellow card to Chelsea's Cesc Fabregas for diving is forgivable.


Although not an excuse, the speed of the game can make it difficult to judge incidents in real time because referees are not infallible. Referees do not sleep well at night knowing that they have made errors.

Errors aside, the real problem is that players, coaches and supporters have become stubbornly accustomed to complaining about every referee decision going against them, regardless of whether it is correct or not.

In last weekend's Hong Kong Premier League match between Tai Po and YFCMD, referee Cheng Oi-cho made a courageous and correct call when he awarded a penalty to YFCMD in the final minute of added time, when the score was 0-0. Tai Po players were incensed, but video replays (watch here at 49:30) undisputedly revealed their captain, Lui Chi-hing, had manhandled YFCMD's Mamadou Hady Barry to the ground.

 

At the final whistle, Tai Po players rounded on the referee. Li Ka-chun bodychecked the referee, Jing Teng clapped sarcastically, Sze Kin-wai hurled abuse and to cap it off the Tai Po coach rushed over and confronted the referee, too.

The fact that the referee made the correct decision is beside the point. Players and coaches, no matter what the circumstances, cannot abuse match officials.

Competition organisers must publicly support referees, and the HKFA must punish Tai Po in the strongest possible terms for their unacceptable behaviour.

Agree or disagree? Contact Rational Ref at rationalref@gmail.com

 

This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as Howlers are unforgivable, but know the difference

PUBLISHED : Thursday, 29 January, 2015

Major Law Screwup in an MLS Match

The following incident occurred during an MLS match between New York Red Bulls and Portland Timbers on 19 August 2012. The match finished 3—2. There was 1 YC.

In the 45', just before halftime with the score 1—2, referee Jason Anno awards a controversial goal to NY Red Bulls (white) to level the score. Here are the freeze frames:

 

 

 

 Referee Jason Anno whistles here for handball, just as Tim Cahill shoots from the rebound

 

 

Portland players (green) question referee Anno's decision. But Anno is adamant that the goal stands.

 

The videoclips can also be seen from:

Highlights: NY v POR (about 04:00 in)

Cahill strikes home controversial equalizer


Even the commentators believed the goal would not stand because of the whistle being blown before the ball entered the goal. Here's how the MLS Match Center described the play:

The Red Bulls then equalized through Tim Cahill just before halftime on a controversial play. Dax McCarty hit a shot that deflected off of defender David Horst’s outstretched arms and center official Jason Anno blew his whistle and signaled for a penalty kick before changing his call after seeing Cahill bury the rebounded effort.

Some questions posed:

1) What are the reasons for referee Jason Anno to award the goal? He clearly knew he whistled for an infringement (i.e. handball), so what was going through his mind?

2) What should the AR and/or 4th Official have done?

3) What are the possible restarts?

Checking the Goal Net ... Supposedly

The following incident occurred during the EAFF qualifying round, hosted in Hong Kong, between North Korea and Australia on Wednesday 5 December 2012. The match finished 1—1, and there were 4 YCs.

Just before the second half begins, the match officials and the players have returned to the field of play. Take a look at the following videoclip of AR1:

Did you see what AR1 did ... or rather did not do?

The identity of AR1 is unknown. Unfortunately, the East Asian Football Federation website lacks many details and only named the match Referee as Wang Zhe (who is either from China or Taiwan). At a guess, I think AR1 was from Thailand because AR2 was from Taiwan ... since each MA were invited to provide only one R and one AR ... so there were no trios). In any case, the officiating at the tournament, held from 1-9 December, was shockingly poor and if anyone would like to learn from the mistakes of other match officials (those who have FIFA badges), then watching match videos of this EAFF qualifying tournament is a good place to start!

For Future Discussion
Match officials who have FIFA badges have a responsibility to carry out their duties to the best of their abilities. Too many times we have witnessed many match officials who flout this responsibility. There is a flaw (perhaps many flaws) in the blanket-wide nature and blanketing culture in allowing each MA throughout the world the same number of match officials to wear FIFA badges, even though this means that there is a huge variation in ability, talent and attitude which largely depends on the quality of national refereeing programmes and also perhaps exposure to regular quality domestic matches. Just watching the FIFA match officials selected for the EAFF qualifying round, who came from China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Thailand, gave me concern about their ability, talent and attitude. This is a discussion for another time.

Happy New Year to everyone!!


Related News Story


Australia top standings as Hong Kong finish third in East Asian Cup qualifiers

Monday, 10 December, 2012, 12:00am
Chan Kin-wa kinwa.chan@scmp.com

Australia qualified for next year's East Asian Cup finals on goal difference yesterday, edging out North Korea at Hong Kong Stadium.

With North Korea beating Hong Kong 4-0 in yesterday's first match, the Australians, level on points and goal difference with the Koreans at the start of the day, had a clear target against Taiwan.

Their mission was completed early as they banged in five goals in the first half, finishing 8-0 winners.
"I feel sorry we could not score more goals in the first two matches against Guam and Taiwan," said North Korea coach Yun Jong-su. "The overall result is a bit lower than our expectations as we've failed to reach the finals."

Australia, who are playing in the East Asian Cup for the first time, join Japan, South Korea and China in July's finals. "It is a welcome opportunity for me to see some of the boys building for the future as our priority is to qualify for the World Cup finals," said coach Holger Osieck.

Referee Mark Clattenburg Back In Command Part 1 of 2

The following incidents occurred during the EPL match between Arsenal and Swansea on Saturday 1 December 2012. The match finished 0—2, with 1YC.

This was Referee Mark Clattenburg's first match back in the middle following his forced 4-week hiatus due to Chelsea's poor and pathetic allegation that he used racist and 'inappropriate language' to Chelsea players in November's match against Manchester United. Clattenburg produced a commanding performance.


Incident One: Foul Identification

In the 5', Clattenburg showed he was still sharp and up to speed with the EPL as he spotted a foul by Arsenal defender Thomas Vermaelen (red 5) on Swansea attacker Michu (white 9). Here are the freeze frames:

Referee Clattenburg had to see through some players from about 20 yards away

Whether this tackle is considered careless or reckless depends on the standard imposed by the match referee. We know the EPL is a physical league with many Referees permitting tough challenges. Furthermore, this challenge occurred in the 5' and many experienced defenders "test the water" in the opening minutes of a match with heavy tackles.


Incident Two: Clattenburg's Characteristic Cowboy Crouch

In the 14', Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny pulls off a double save and the ball goes out for a corner. Here are some freeze frames:

Clattenburg has put himself in the standard position, and with his characterisic legs apart as if straddling a horse. This is perhaps related to his Classic Cowboy Crouch when he performs his duties as an EAR (extra AR).

Plus there is a potential pun about "Being put straight back on the saddle" that may be lost on Clattenburg's employers who unfortunately did not give the positive impression that they were supporting him in the face of, and subsequent failure of, Chelsea's racism charge.


Incident Three: Obstructing An Opponent

In the 51' Arsenal attacker Gervinho plays a quick one—two but is obstructed by Swansea defender Chico Flores. Here are the freeze frames:

Replays suggest it was a foul, but since Clattenburg was very close to the play he immediately put his hands behind his back to communicate to everyone that, in the opinion of the Referee, there was no foul.

The incident occurred outside the penalty area, so if a foul was awarded it would have been a DFK just outside the box.


Incident Four: No Penalty Call

In the 71', Clattenburg makes an excellent decision when Arsenal attacker Olivier Giroud is suddenly put through on goal. Swansea defender Chico Flores makes a last-gasp tackle. Here are the freeze frames:

Giroud has green-tipped boots and Flores has white-tipped boots, which helps reviewers and assessors when watching replays!

Clattenburg acknowledges his AR2, since there is clear communication between them. AR2 probably assisted by saying something like "no foul" or "no penalty".

Arsene Wenger thinks "penalty"

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger appears mortified that nothing (no penalty, no red card) was given. From his view from the technical area (far away and possibly without the proper angle), it may have looked as though it was a foul.

This was a great call, and will be further mentioned when this post resumes in Part 2 of Referee Mark Clattenburg Back In Command.

Welcome back Clatts!