standard of officials

[bobo66]

I agree with others that the standard of the referees and linesmen in this League has been woeful. Unfortunately I don't think being promoted to League Two will dramatically improve this. If we cast our minds back to League football, there were some pretty awful referees then. I'm not even sure it's true that the lower the league the lower the standard of referees. You only have to watch Match of the Day to see some pretty bad decision in the Premier League too.

Does anyone really think that the referees we will get in League Two (assuming we get promoted) will be better?

[Rich Tea Wellin]

I agree.

It's better but people forget that it's still really sh*t.

[Cheshunto]

Yes, i think fans were unhappy when we were in L1 and L2 and No, its not going to improve.
I think the difference is that EFL Officials will be stricter and this of course applies to both teams. Shirt pulling, dangerous tackles etc which some players seem to get away with in the National League will, i think, be punished more often than what we`ve seen over the past two seasons.

[Long slender neck]

Never really noticed any difference. Just the nature of the game that fans will not agree with decisions made.

[CreamofSumYungGai]

Referees make mistakes at all levels, of course they will.

But there's a massive difference between what refs consider a foul or not in this league. It's undeniable. We've seen it week after week. It's taken us a long time to wise up to it but think we've finally got there - see some of the pushing Happe was getting away with on Monday, Marv's shirt pulling, Clay leaving the foot in etc.

Another factor is that refs at this level aren't used to crowds of our size. It clearly affects them.

[Article_50]

There was one home game earlier in the season where the ref was so dreadful that I left at half-time, I wrote a letter to the FA complaining about his incompetence, I'm still waiting for a reply.

[EliotNes]

The standard will marginally improve but we’ll still complain

[Esteban]

The issue I have with National League football is not so much that the refs make the wrong decisions, this happens at all levels. Officiating the game is a bl*ddy hard job and I wouldn't want to do it. What gets me is that it's blatantly obvious that refs at National League level clearly have the attitude that kicking the sh*t out of players is part and parcel, and just wave it on.

Whilst I don't expect refs in League 2 to be wildly more accurate in their decision making, I believe they will do a far better job of punishing wildly dangerous play. There have been some truly nasty tackles this season which have not been correctly punished. Off the top of my head I can think of three separate occasions where Josh Koroma had been targeted (the stamp away at Boreham Wood, the ninja assault by the Salford defender at home, and the revenge cruncher by that Porter ars*hole away at Bromley) which were not dealt with correctly.

Other horror moments include the ankle breaker on Dayton, which was handled so badly it ended with the stretchered player seeing red.

I can live with refs not giving pens, awarding dodgy free kicks and dishing out the odd harsh yellow card. What is unacceptable is referring so hapless that it actually endangers player safety. I believe that this will be much improved in League 2.

[PotatOhead]

The ref's have been poor, but the standard of the linesman is even worse. May as well not be there, the amount of fouls and offsides that should result in fk's where play has just continued has become a joke!

[Cheshunto]

The standard will marginally improve but we’ll still complain

Yes, of course we will, i just think they will probably be a bit stricter in the EFL.
Refs only pull up things they`re told to, they all have an assessor sitting in the stand watching their every move.
I only know because two of my sons were referees and they`re told what kind of things they can allow and what they can`t.
Defenders, our own included, do get away with a lot in the National League and ours may need some adjustment to their game for next season.

[RedDwarf 1881]

I think the real difference will be players can't get away with the same levels of thuggery in the EFL as they do at National League level.

[faith1234]

Well the standard of referees are not that great right up to division 1 like i said before the ref linesmen all need to go on a refrester course

[OyinbO]

They have clearly been inferior in this division. It's hardly surprising given the lower level of oversight, lower standard of play etc. The standard is commensurate with the standard of the players, the facilities, the support given to them, the accountability, and the reduced scrutiny - after all, do 15 travelling Boreham Wood weirdos have that much influence?

[gshaw]

I think the real difference will be players can't get away with the same levels of thuggery in the EFL as they do at National League level.

Absolutely this. What we've seen at NL level isn't football for example the Salford challenge on Koroma that went unpunished.

It's not that the referees don't see the challenges, they willfully ignore them which to me suggests it's instruction from higher up as it's happened too consistently to just be poor officiating.

There will still be battles don't get me wrong and having the likes of Turley in our squad will still benefit us in L2. However our flair players can rest a bit easier knowing they won't get cut in half every game.

[Cheshunto]

Yes the assault on Koroma by that Salford thug was shocking.
I really hope they don’t even reach the final.