EASTLEIGH YOUTH

Discussion Topics - Presented at All Members Youth meetings

List of Articles - Go to
Swearing
Racism
Variances in Refereeing

Swearing - Article provided by Tom Lawson
In Youth football swearing is a prominent thing. Everyone does it including coaches, parents and, even worse, young players. But where do or should we draw the line?

Firstly I believe with coaches the swearing should stop immediately. It is awful to see coaches swearing at young children. This can be the cause of the problem

Parents and fans should also be asked to stop if the swearing gets out of hand. These are the two main influences over the young children.
This leads onto the children searing themselves - where do you believe the line should be drawn?

I asked people who enjoyed football and refereeing for their opionions on the matter. Many of them believed that no swearing should be tolerated. And that a verbal warning or card should be issued to anybody who swears in any case even those not stated in the law.
 

I also share this idea. I believe football should be clean of swearing on the pitch and that the people in the crowds should respect the beliefs of others.

I believe there should be no swearing tolerated. I believe like racism swearing should be kicked out of football

Racism - Article provided by Society Youth Member
Racism can happen inside stadiums and close to stadiums. This can be in the form of abusive chants against black and ethnic minority players or the display of right-extremist messages and symbols

As well as this there is institutionalised forms of racism. This is about the exclusion of ethnic minorities and migrants on different levels of of football.

Unfortunately, at all levels of the game, from amateur to international, there are still incidents of racism. This can be in the form of abuse directed at a foreign player to 'monkey' chants of supporters. I believe such behaviour is unacceptable and unwanted by the majority of fans and players'

Football is the biggest sport in the world and belongs to us all. It should be the right of every person to play, watch and discuss freely, without fear.

Proportionate fines for bad behavior
£34,000 - Robert Pires, for wearing the wrong sponsor's clothes in a television interview
£32,000 - Inter Milan for fans throwing missiles onto the pitch and at rival fans
£15,000 - Arsene Wenger for saying Rudd van Nistlerooy "can only cheat"
£13,000 - PSV Eindhoven, for racist chanting
£7,000 - Real Madrid for racist chanting
£2,300 - Patrick Viera, for criticising UEFA's handling of Racism

Update
FIFA's latest crackdown on bad behaviour sees Spain fined £44.750 for their fans behviour recently. That'll teach Spanish FA who were estimated to receive £3million for the television rights - a valuable lesson.

What can you do about racism?
If you experience Racism in anyway - if its a player you send them off and report the player. If its a manager you ask them to leave the ground and report them. If its a spectator you ask the manager to make them leave.
If it becomes too much you can abandon the game.

Variances in Refereeing
At a Society Meeting our Young Referees discussed the Refereeing variances they have seen as Assistant Referees.
Dress Code
They had witnessed Referees attending in Suits, Track Suits and Jeans - Yes even Jeans! Some of these variances were believed to be due to Age! Really.
Greetings
Some Referees had introduced themselves on arrival in an easy and relaxed manner, whilst others were very detached and sometimes almost ignored them-which they felt was due to their young age or inexperience.
Tolerance - Referees had variable levels of tolerances to players attitudes on the field. Some would tolerate some swearing and dissent.
Pre-Match Instructions - differences included greeting Players/Teams, Left & Right Back Lines (due to sun Position, Spectators, Flexibility etc) & keeping of Match Records
Warm Up - Prior to the match Referees will either go out and warm up with running or exercises whilst others will do nothing but enjoy a cup of Tea! General feeling was to settle into their own routine and irrespective of what others do - do your own thing!
Communication during play - Some did too much (thumb up every two minutes) whilst others too little.
Penalty - Concerns were raised over instruction differences for infringements in the Box. However it was noted that all Assistant Referees were there to Assist and not Insist. Thus signal to a Referee which allows him to make the decision.
Socialising - Some referees always go and have a drink with the teams after the game whilst others depart quickly.

Thanks to Mike and Dan for providing good debate with their young colleagues