Capital Football has broken its silence on the matter driving a wedge through the game.
The governing body has agreed to implement a number of initiatives in a bid to shut down verbal and physical abuse of referees following recent meetings with the referees standing advisory committee.
Capital Football boss Phil Brown has broken his silence via a statement.
The action plan has been given the tick of approval from Capital Football chief executive Phil Brown, referee committee chairman Alex McConachie, and representatives from the Safety and Support Working Group.
Brown has shrugged off a cone of silence to agree abuse of match officials should not be tolerated, and the two bodies will work with the clubs to ensure measures are put in place to hold individuals accountable.
Capital Football will work to ensure the safety and security of the environment in which referees are asked to go about their work following claims whistleblowers have been victims of death threats, sexist remarks and physical abuse.
"We acknowledge the need to focus resources to improve the experience for all stakeholders, in particular our referees. Officiating at matches is a difficult task, one made even harder in an environment where verbal abuse can at times be commonplace," Brown said.
"The abuse of participants in our game is unacceptable in any form. We will continue to work with the RSAC, referees and clubs to ensure measures are put in place to hold accountable those individuals that behave in an antisocial fashion, and also better manage the environment in which our referees are asked to go about their work."
The action plan has bore three key areas of reform to ensure referees are able to officiate in the Canberra premier league finals series beginning on Saturday.
- Better referee development and support: Capital Football will invest in the development and implementation of improved training and coaching for referees, with a focus on conflict management and report writing. This measure ensures referees have access to professional support when they experience a hostile or abusive environment.
- Improved Incident Management: Capital Football will review its own internal systems and resourcing, while calling on stronger support and leadership in revising and enforcing the dispute and discipline regulations, as well as competition regulations. The hope is appropriate sanctions will be applied and upheld by Capital Football and its tribunal.
- Better engagement between Clubs, Capital Football and the Referees: Capital Football has identified clubs as a crucial cog in stamping out referee abuse. Clubs will be held accountable for actions that improve player, coach and spectator behaviour with match officials.
Referees will officiate in the opening weekend of the Canberra premier league finals series but retention is proving difficult for Capital Football, with 45 per cent of referees aged between 18 and 30 leaving the game over the past two years.
Capital Football plans to run courses for club vested officials in early 2019 with a strong focus on clubs participating in premier league competitions, with harsher penalties set to be imposed on non-compliance with competition regulations.
The governing body will work with clubs to ensure coaches have required accreditation while implementing education resources on the laws of the game for use by coaches and club officials.
Capital Football plans to announce the outcome of its referee review by the end of the year, which Brown and McConachie hope will go a long way towards eliminating referee abuse in the 2019 season.
It is hoped the new measures will go a long way towards eliminating the physical and verbal abuse directed at referees by players, coaches or spectators at matches.
"It is imperative we all deliver on these to eliminate both physical and verbal abuse of match officials and provide a better experience for all participants in our game," McConachie said.
"Everyone in the football community has a right to feel safe and supported when they participate in our sport. As we can see from the escalating number of serious incidents placing referee safety at risk in recent seasons, as a community we clearly have more work to do to support our referees.
"We know abuse of match officials by players, officials and spectators is a leading factor in referees choosing to discontinue their involvement in officiating.
"This behaviour has no place in our game."
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