So why are the standards of refereeing falling and what can be done to stop the injustices that happen every Saturday afternoon up and down the country?

Ultimately the blame must lie with the FA whose job it is to control and regulate training and performance of referees. Maybe a system of ‘suspending referees’ for unjust and costly decisions should be trialled in the lower leagues. After all being a referee is now a profession so there must be some accountability as there is with every job.

Another huge problem is the age of our current referees and the development of new referees. You cant go to the match without hearing cries of the referees ‘fat’ or ‘slow’ or ‘blind’. This is a problem which will continue into the future unless something is done now. However without FA funding this is impossible. My sixteen year old brother has just passed all of his refereeing exams but has been left with no further chance for development as the FA refuse to fund a Refereeing Academy. Surely in order to solve the problems of today an academy where referees can be trained and taught would be an ideal solution.

A huge stumbling block for a Refereeing Academy is the fact that many of the ‘suits’ at the FA believe that to be a referee you need to be at least 40. Yes I understand you need experience but the same was said about an unmentionable eighteen year old about playing for England. I seem to remember the response being ‘if you’re good enough you’re old enough’. So why can’t the same be said for refs.

Every Saturday night it is argued in pubs that a referee has spoilt the game, this is a huge problem and an even bigger problem is that there are no referees for tomorrow and if there are no refs where does that leave football?

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