First Round of the FA Cup this weekend, which for fans outside of lower league football is of little interest I know. This weekend is slightly different for me as one of my old stomping grounds Dover Athletic are having their tie with Corby refereed for the first time in the competition by a woman, Amy Fearn. Mike Newell had this to say about her in a previous league game... The Hatters boss criticised her performance as an assistant during a defeat by QPR, saying: âShe shouldnât be here. I know that sounds sexist, but Iâm sexist. This isnât parks football so what are women doing here?â His outburst landed him with a £6,500 fine and he later apologised. Conversely, Corby's manager had this to say... News of her appointment to the Steelmenâs fixture was welcomed by Corbyâs joint manager Andrew Wilson, who said his experiences so far with female officials had been entirely positive. âI was part of the Histon squad that made an away trip to Solihull Moors last season and Sian Massey was the referee,â he said. âIt was my first involvement with a female official. She was quality. âSian set a really high standard and, sadly for Amy, Iâm expecting nothing different! Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...referee-FA-Cup-round-match.html#ixzz2jrUKQuFG Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
Is she the known assistant ref (Linesman)? If so, she is excellent running the line, several times I have thought, she's ballsed it up and every time she was spot on. I know they are different skills, but I'd expect her to be decent (if I'm thinking of the right person)
I think you're thinking of Sian Massey and yeah, she's good at what she does. Bring it on. Female refs should attract less harassment from the players, if they're decent human beings. Amy Fearn: please log in to view this image
Good luck to her. Personally couldn't give a **** if a man, woman or bloody dog is refereeing providing they officiate the game fairly . Don't see why some managers believe a woman shouldn't be doing it though, most of the male refs are ****! If she's half as good as Sian Massey though she'll be a great ref/ official.
When the likes of Terry yells "you f***ing c***" at the ref, is he insulting her or asking about her sexual preferences ??
Excellent point re swearing RDBD, though I see two sides to that. Some may say if she wants to put herself in the firing line of the joc you accept it with the choice vocabulary used in every game, or some might feel the need to curb the language with some manners. It does raise the valid question should footballers have to conduct themselves differently?, my opinion is no, if women want treating the same, you take the job warts an all.
I don't see why a woman shouldn't be able to referee any better/worse than a man. There are no particular skills required, which are more likely to be found in males rather than females. As long as she's physically up to the demands, she's fine. The issue is the attitude of the players and managers. If Mike Newell's contempt is reflected in his players, they will make it difficult for her to do her job properly and then the prophecies become self-fulfilling - she couldn't handle it, she wasn't up to it, she lost control of the game etc.
Footballers should be polite to refs anyway. Tbh i'm all in favour of only allowing captains, and players involved in an incident being able to talk to a ref, and them doing so in a courtious manner and it being fed to the tv stations so we know what is said. That way you don't get scummy teams surrounding the ref, shouting stuff at them that would get you arrested out on town if you said it to an officer. If the fa want respect, they need to enforce it as well as earn it. I'd happily send off anyone that called me a ****.
That's a really brilliant, yet utterly stupid quote. It's up there with Lee Dixon's recent one during a chat about Ferguson's autobiography: "I don’t understand books, at all." Parking before the game?
This could be what football needs, female lineswomen and referees at every game, as the refs could then take players such as Rooney by the ear and say things such as "what would your mum think if she heard you speaking like that".............although judging by Rooneys past, that may turn him on!
Opening the jar that they use to carry the cards to games? Heaven forbid there's a mouse that runs on the pitch.. Okay enough casual sexism from me, I don't mean it, honest
I'm all in favor of equality, but I'm concerned that she'll have to work awfully hard to be half as bad as many. I'm all in favor of handing out a card to anyone who tries to mob a ref, not to mention, "wave a fake card, I'll give you a real one." Do it a couple of times and players will shape up fast.
Just for the Craic ( not literally) [video=youtube;i-3cuCEt9k8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-3cuCEt9k8&feature=youtube_gdata_player[/video]
And a potential issue [video=youtube;ZP1N4PWneMI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZP1N4PWneMI&feature=youtube_gdata_player[/video]
