http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/15806602.stm Just shows that abusing referees can have serious consequences - I know that the article doesn't say what caused the referee to attempt suicide but you would think abuse from fans, coaches etc would have been at least partly responsible.
We can't know that it was the prospect of refereeing his next game that tipped him over the edge. Perhaps he had personal/family problems, the article doesn't cover that possibility. However, if referees are truly finding the job so stressful that they are fundamentally depressed, then surely video technology is a way of helping to take the strain off them. Instead of it being a confessor of mistakes, it can work with the referee, and instead of the official taking the brunt of ridicule, 90% of the time of which is undeserved, perhaps their reputation can be recovered. Refereeing mistakes are part and parcel of football. If people don't like unfair advantages gained by the mistakes that referees make [and I'm one of those] then video technology must be the immediate answer. If you don't want video technology then don't bleat when human error works against you.
If he had personal/family issues, surely he would have requested to be taken off the game, thats why I am thinking football is at least partly responsible. There is far too much pressure on referees, they make mistakes like you say, as do players and managers but they dont cop it as much as referees.
Well possibly that's true. But then again, it's often a brave person to admit they have anything wrong within themselves or their family. You're right, there is far too much pressure on referees nowadays. The rules of football were written when there was no chance of a referee's decision to be replayed and analysed. It takes a pretty special individual, IMO, to be 90 to 99% right for 90+ minutes, when working within a populated cauldren of noise, and then knowing that every marginal decision will be analysed and dissected, and then commented on by former players who have the benefit of seeing the action replayed in slow motion as many times as they need to make their minds up. I notice that no pundits are former referees - isn't that an omission..?
I think it's far more likely to be something in his personal life than his career. If Beckham coped with the abuse after World Cup 98, then anyone can, because I don't think anyone will receive the same level of abuse that he did.
