Let’s cut referees a bit of slack

In last week’s issue, we ran a news story on page 2 where Alan Dowson – the Hampton & Richmond Borough boss – had some colourful views on the standard of refereeing in National League South. Dowson’s comments were enough to force more than a few of you to write in and voice a reply, and the general consensus was that the Hampton boss was out of line.

First thing’s first, this was a news line for the paper, and I’ll be honest it was a strong one because Dowson was prepared to go on the record and say what he said. From our point of view, that’s great. But I can assure you, his views are not reflective of how the paper views referees. Quite the contrary, in fact.

From what I have seen on the refereeing front this season (and admittedly I have only attended five games) I have seen nothing to change my view that they are, by and large, doing an excellent job. Managers will always have an agenda with referees. That’s just a fact of football and it isn’t going to change

What got most readers’ backs up was Dowson referring to one referee as giving him some ‘chat’ during a game and if that’s the case, it is disappointing. But again I have never witnessed anything like that.

What I have witnessed though is plenty of poor behaviour from managers directing their bile at officials, both during and after games. From screaming abuse to threats of physical violence, trust me, you see it all when you are loitering outside changing rooms waiting to pick up interviews. The referees’ door at Farnborough Town used get a regular kicking as it was conveniently placed between the two changing rooms and I can remember one time an away manager nearly ripped the thing off its hinges.

Refereeing? It’s a thankless task and respect really is a two-way thing, and despite Dowson’s comments – which he is entitled to make – nobody holds the refs in higher regard than us here at