Notes for guidance of club secretaries

These notes are for guidance and should be used in conjunction with the North Berks League Competition Rules.

Berks and Bucks FA affiliation fees and North Berks League, Cup, Charity Shield, League Cup and Kingham Cup entry fees are payable to the North Berks Hon. Treasurer on demand by 15th August.

On receipt of notification all fines and accounts should be paid to the Treasurer within 14 days.

Registration

Last day for Registrations and Transfers in all competitions is March 1st. For League (and all subsidiary competitions) any Registration Form received 72 hours prior to the match will be deemed to comply if in order in all other respects. If in any doubt about whether a player has been registered, please check with the Hon Registration Secretary or don't play them!

Before matches

In accordance with Rule 13 (A), confirm the fixture and location of ground with the appointed referee.
Check opponents' colours for possible colour clash; home team to change if necessary.
Have changing accommodation open and ground ready for inspection at least 30 minutes before kick-off.
Home club to supply suitable flags for use by club linesmen and to present referee with suitable match ball.
The home team must supply a Match Result Sheet, fill in the relevant details (in BLOCK CAPITALS including full first and last names) and pass it to the opponents in sufficient time for them to complete their details and ensure that it is with the referee at least 15 minutes prior to kick off. This new process covers the need to provide substitutes names to the referee prior to kick-off in accordance with Rule 10 (G).

During matches

Ensure that a responsible club official is nominated who will ensure the security of the dressing rooms on match days, including ensuring that the area is securely locked during play.

After matches

Pay match official within 15 minutes of completion of the match and receive the duly completed Match Result Sheet back from the referee.

Each Club within fifteen (15) minutes of the conclusion of a match hand to the opposing Club a completed match card showing, in CAPITAL letters the surname and initial(s) of competing players.. Where two players have the same surname and initials, each player should be clearly identifiable e.g forename shown in full. The card shall show the substitute(s) and whether the substitute(s) did or did not play.
Within 75 minutes of the conclusion of the match, (If at all possible telephone results to be received by 5 p.m. at very latest.) telephone the designated NBFL official with:
- home results in all North Berks League and Cup competitions
- all results home or away in outside competitions or postponements (you may also need to telephone officials from the Organisers of those outside competitions - please check competition rules)
Send Match Result Sheet to the Registration Secretary by 1st class post (if not hand-delivered), making sure that the Match Result Sheet is completed in the proper manner.
Notification must be given to the Fixtures Secretary by completing the appropriate Postponement Form should any domestic fixture be postponed.
Notify the Fixture Secretary of any commitments, postponements or re-arrangements in outside competitions (Mr John Higgs 01793 864265 / e-mail: higgsfamily5@sky.com).

NB The current designated NBFL official is Mr Phil Annets, Media Relations Officer on telephone number 01491 832677. Please remember to phone in all home results and any away results for matches played in outside cup competitions

Guidance for marking of referees

The mark awarded by a club must be based on the referee's overall performance. It is most important that the mark is awarded fairly and not based on isolated incidents or previous games. The referee's performance should be determined by the table below which should act as a guide for the overall mark which should fall within the mark range for each standard of performance.

Mark Range	Comment
91-100	The referee was extremely accurate in decision making and very successfully controlled the game using management and communication skills to create an environment of fair play. Adding real value to the game.
81-90	The referee was very accurate in decision making and successfully controlled the game using management and communication skills to create an environment of fair play.
71-80	The referee was accurate in decision making and controlled the game well, communicating with the players, making a positive contribution towards fair play.
61-70	The referee was reasonably accurate in decision making, controlled the game quite well and communicated with players, establishing a reasonable degree of fair play.
51-60	The referee had some shortcomings in the level of accuracy of decision making and control with only limited success in communicating with the players resulting in variable fair play.
50 and below	The referee has significant shortcomings in the level of accuracy of decision making and control with poor communication with the players which resulted in low levels of fair play.

Notes:

Using a scale of up to 100 allows greater flexibility for clubs to distinguish between different refereeing performances more accurately.
A mark within each mark range can be given to reflect the referee's performance e.g. a mark of 79 indicates a somewhat better performance than a mark of 71.
A mark of between 71 and 80 represents the standard of refereeing expected.
When a mark of 50 or less is awarded, an explanation must be provided to the League or Competition. It must include comments which could help improve the referee's future performances. Even where a referee has significant shortcomings there will have been some positive aspects which should be given credit; extremely low marks (below 20) should be very rare.

How to Decide on the Referee's Mark

The following questions focus on the key areas of a referee's performance. They are intended as an "aide memoire", are not necessarily comprehensive and need not be answered individually. It is, however, worth considering them before committing yourself to a mark for the referee.

Control & Decision Making

How well did the referee control the game?
Were the players' actions recognised correctly?
Were the laws applied correctly?
Were all incidents dealt with efficiently/effectively?
Were all the appropriate sanctions applied correctly?
Was the referee always within a reasonable distance of incidents?
Was the referee well positioned to make critical decisions, especially in and around the penalty area?
Did the referee understand the players' positional intentions and keep out of the way accordingly?
Did the referee demonstrate alertness and concentration throughout the game?
Did the referee apply the use of advantage to suit the mood and temperature of the game?
Was the referee aware of the players' attitude to advantage?
Did the referee use the assistants effectively?
Did the officials work as a team, and did the referee lead and manage them to the benefit of the game?

Communication & Player Management

How well did the referee communicate with the players during the game?
Did the referee's level of involvement/profile suit this particular game?
Did the referee understand the players' problems on the day – e.g. difficult ground/weather conditions?
Did the referee respond to the changing pattern of play/mood of players?
Did the referee demonstrate empathy for the game, allowing it to develop in accordance with the tempo of the game?
Was the referee pro-active in his/her controlling of the game?
Was the referee's authority asserted firmly without being officious?
Was the referee confident and quick thinking?
Did the referee appear unflustered and unhurried when making critical decisions?
Did the referee permit undue questioning of decisions?
Did the referee deal effectively with players crowding around after decisions/incidents?
Was effective player management in evidence?
Was the referee's body language confident and open at all times?
Did the pace of the game, the crowd or player pressure affect the referee negatively?

Final Thoughts

Always try to be objective when marking. You may not obtain the most objective view by marking immediately after the game.
Judge the performance over the whole game. Don't be too influenced by one particular incident.
Don't mark the referee down unfairly because your team was unlucky and lost the game or some disciplinary action was taken against your players.

Administration

Answer all correspondence when directed.

Only telephone North Berks League Officers between 6pm and 9pm when urgent advice or assistance is required.

First aid

Clubs are encouraged to arrange for a responsible adult person to be in attendance at matches (in addition to players and club linesmen) to be able to act in the case of emergency e.g. serious injury.

Referee's fees

The referee's fee, inclusive of travelling expenses, shall be £35.00. The fee for Assistant Referees, when appointed shall be £29.00, inclusive of travelling expenses. The home club shall pay the officials their fees within 15 minutes of the end of the match. A club failing to comply shall be fined not exceeding £15.00.

In the event of a match not being played because of circumstances over which the Clubs have no control, the Match Officials, if present, shall be entitled to a fee of £17.00 for a Referee and £13.00 for an Assistant Referee.

Club linesman of the year (club assistant referee)

An award is made annually to the Club Linesman who obtains the highest average mark in North Berks league matches. Club Linesmen should ensure that the officiating Referee is made aware of his name so that an assessment of his performance can be made and passed to the Hon Referees Secretary, who will collate the marks to determine the eventual winner. All Referees in all games should submit marks on their Match Report Cards.

The North Berks Football League Council fully supports the worthwhile scheme that encourages regular participation of Club Linesmen and undoubtedly increases the competency of individuals for the benefit of North Berks football in general.