Former official Gough says current ref standards are best ever

RESPECT is what the GAA President Nickey Brennan is demanding of players and team mentors at all levels for referees, but, the buzzword from the match officials is consistency.

The National Referees Committee hope this ambition will be achieved through the various publications that have become available in recent times.

Former referee John Gough from Antrim, best remembered for sending off four players in the infamous 1983 All-Ireland football final between Dublin and Galway, believes that the various back-ups are certain to improve standards.

He believes that the current standard of refereeing is the best he has seen.

“There is no comparison. In the past, the referee dawdled around the pitch, thinking he was under pressure. It’s very different nowadays,” he says.

“We know now the amount of ground he covers, we have got the GPS (global positioning systems) in. We can measure a referee’s heart-beat and you know the pressure he is under from the time he goes out on the pitch until the time he comes off.”

Referees’ hydration levels are also monitored, points out Gough, a member of the National Assessors Tutor Workgroup.

“At the start of this year we measured an inter-county referee. We discovered that he was badly hydrated prior to going out for a game and at the end of it he was a hospital case!

“It’s not surprising when you think of the amount of running that a referee does during a game, the amount of decision-making that they have to do and the pressure this brings. Think of the fitness of inter-county players nowadays and the ‘cluster’ defence.”

The publication of a new ‘Refereeing Mates’ handbook (which includes guidelines for linesmen and umpires), and the distribution of a CD, will assist greatly in the training of new referees.

Continued Gough: “It’s no longer a case of one person in the middle of the field as we were used to. Now, it’s about the ‘team,’ about the linesmen and the umpires ‘contributing.’ And, when it comes to the assessment process, it’s the ‘team’ that is assessed, not just the referee.”

The Ulster Council has established an ‘academy,’ which comprises several young aspiring referees in football and hurling from each county.

It’s viewed as an important step forward in the recruitment drive launched by Nickey Brennan earlier in the week.

“These aids will help people in the counties to run ‘good’ courses,” adds Gough. “Everybody will know how to do things the right way. It will be all about getting a consistent message across.”

Gough claims that the standard attained by people like Pat McEnaney and others is comparable with the best from any other sport in the world.

“Look at the difficulties in soccer, with their top professionals. Our guys train just as hard. Their target for physical fitness is just as high.”

Overall, however, he accepts that for a big number of referees, it’s a continual learning process,’ except that it’s now being facilitated by the appointment of referee ‘mentors,’ and video assessment in much the same way that managers assess players.

“The assessment the referee gets is not about criticism, it shouldn’t be. It’s all about confidence-building. About improving performances!”