Something to think about!

The attention that has been given to match officials in recent weeks continues to divide opinion. We’ve seen coaches coming short of swearing at the match officials and questioning their decisions, when the dice doesn’t fall for them. Now this is becoming a serious cause for concern as it borders on putting the DStv Premiership and its sponsors into disrepute. The list of coaches complaining about referees in their post-match interviews is slowly getting out of hand. Having said that, the coaches are starting to look and sound silly in their interviews.

Regular readers of this column will remember the suggestion made here, almost a year ago, that coaches should be given more time before facing a microphone after the final whistle. You see, coaches need to be given enough time to gather their thoughts, calm their blood pressure and compose themselves after the final whistle blows, before they can give their summation of the game. It takes a lot of emotional intelligence for a coach to maintain a calm demeaner, especially after a loss and a couple of questionable decisions against him. It is not easy to deal with the facts, not emotions, and remain rationale in the analysis of the game. Not everyone is going to master that skill because, unfortunately, not everyone has it in them. There are several issues that need to be addressed in our football. The powers-that-be at the PSL need to seriously consider allowing the coaches some breathing space after the game so that they can gather their thoughts and consult with their analysts and technical team members, if necessary, before they are faced with questions. Maybe it is time clubs also invested in technology where there is a technical team debrief immediately after the final whistle where the coach will go through their data immediately and see what really happened, not just what they think happened, before they go and make public statements without facts. That will go a long way in saving our coaches from themselves, as they are sometimes found wanting and completely ‘off-side’ with their remarks on incidents that took place in the game. If there are specific incidents the coach wants to address, he can be briefed on those immediately after the game so that he goes on air fully armed with facts rather than going on an emotional rant only to look silly and stupid later on. By so doing, the coach will be rational in his analysis and armed with conclusive evidence for the interview.

That would be one way to avoid these silly-looking post-match interviews and ensure that the coaches talk about facts. It is so embarrassing to see a coach blasting match officials when you’ve seen television replays confirming that the match officials’ decisions were 100% accurate. But because the coach didn’t get a chance to view the incidents, he goes by what he feels rather than what really happened. Those who are watching on television have the privilege of replays and therefore know exactly what happened but the same can’t be said about the coach. He would have to get home and watch the repeat, only to finally get to see what happened. However, it is too late for the coach to do or say anything about the incident. With the benefit of hindsight, we are able to change our initial conclusion because of the footage in front of us but most of our coaches don’t have that luxury, which necessitates the use of technology so that it bridges the gap. This would really go a long way in maintaining the high standards the PSL has set because, truth be told, as much as there have been controversial incidents in our game so far this season, a number of coaches have been proven wrong, left with a huge egg on their face after making serious allegations against match officials. Casting aspersions on their neutrality, putting the game into disrepute. This goes to rather prove that sometimes it is emotions rather than facts that drive some of our coaches, when they lambast the match officials for the so-called wrong decisions.

Can you imagine how these coaches feel when they get home and realise that they made a fool of themselves on national television, and they don’t even have a platform to apologise or admit that they were wrong? At the end of the day, the last thing we need is to see and hear these unsubstantiated allegations in the Beautiful Game as they cast unnecessary doubt on FIFA’s Fair Play, which is one of the most important phrases in professional football. That’s why the cameramen choose the footage they share with the viewers because they have to protect the game. There are incidents that occur at the stadium that you can see but that won’t make it on television. It is not because the cameramen can’t see it, but they rather show something else because that incident does more harm than good to our football. Such incidents are not of public interest because if you give them airtime, then you are unwittingly encouraging them as they are almost guaranteed to be given airtime. Almost everyone wants to be on television and that’s why some run to the field, knowing cameras will focus on them. When cameras ignore those people, they get discouraged and stop. That’s the cameramen’s responsibility and way of protecting the Beautiful Game. While coaches have a right to speak their minds, they have an obligation to protect and promote our football. However, if they are ‘forced’ to speak when they are still emotional, then there is a high risk of them ‘losing their mind’. That’s why it is imperative that coaches are given enough time to compose themselves before they are brought in front of a camera.

Have you noticed the difference between the coach doing a post-match interview and the coach who is in the post-match press conference? That’s because there is enough time to compose themselves before the latter than the former. They would have engaged with their technical team members, checked their phone and caught up on everything that has happened before they go and sit in front of the media, unlike the post-match interview which happens straight after the game. They would have had time to ask specific questions about the incidents they’d like to address, and they would get proper answers, sometimes with evidence, from their colleagues. By the time the coach addresses the press conference, he is a lot sober-minded than he was in the post-match interview.

We all understand that the broadcasters are working on tight schedules, therefore time is money to them. However, is it worth risking putting the Beautiful Game into disrepute just because the broadcasters can’t be flexible enough to accommodate a 10-minute breather, for instance? Surely preserving the game and doing things professionally should be more important than worrying about time. Also, the broadcasters, since they also have the best interests of our football at heart, should be able to accommodate this arrangement if it was brought to their attention. After all, football is not called a Beautiful Game for nothing! We all love this game, and we all have a role to play in ensuring that we protect it with everything we have. Let us ensure that we give coaches some time to cool off after the game before we engage them because they keep sounding silly now because of their emotional outbursts. This is something to really think about and one believes it will be a win-win for all parties involved.