Referee ID cards are now out
The first batch of referee ID cards are in the post
It took over year to achieve, but after the hard work from the League Referee Officer Lucy Batchelor and Craig Grundy and Matt Handley at Sheffield & Hallamshire CFA the referee ID card scheme will go ahead for the 2014/15 season.
All referees in the League will need to produce an ID card, very much like players currently have to, before every League and cup fixture in the Sheffield & District Junior Sunday League. This will give the team managers confidence that the referee is indeed qualified and registered.
Last season saw the League taking a big stance against the use of non qualified and non registered referees. This was a direct result of previous League surveys when the issue of referees was highlighted as an issue that needed addressing.
The impacts of that approach were:
-Number of refs registering with SHCFA went up, as non registered referee could no longer hide in the two local junior leagues, which possibly has happened in the past
-Level 9 refs getting moved up to Level 8/7 a lot faster as they were able to the 6 qualifying fixtures in this League.
-League average ref marks gone up, as the percentage of matches used by a qualified and registered ref
If you have a referee attached to your club, please ask them to register with the League as soon as possible. Please assist them where needed.
Possession of an ID card is not a licence to referee. It is to verify identity. Clubs should still check that the referee they are using/their opponents are providing appears on the League list which will be available on the website.
The Football Association funded the project which ran last season and the League is very grateful for that financial support.