NHIAA Soccer Refereeing: What’s the Problem? | Opinion
Above: Derryfield Girls' Varsity Soccer plays Laconia on home turf
I’m never the first one to criticize referees. As a referee myself, I understand that they aren’t going to always make the right call, but there is a point where it can become a serious problem. I began to question how much leeway you can give a league that consistently assigns referees to games who are seemingly missing calls on both teams, or being far too lenient with their yellow cards nearly every game. My ankle broke from a studs-up slide tackle from behind in a preseason soccer game, described as a “vulgar tackle” by one of my teammates, and no foul was called, no card issued. I wondered, is this refereeing problem just how it is, or is it just within New Hampshire high school soccer? After interviewing various high school players from around the state and New England region, I have come to my conclusion that the root of the problem is the New Hampshire Interscholastic Athletic Association (NHIAA).
First you have to ask the question, is this a nationwide problem, or a local one? On the quality of the refereeing he has experienced this season, a player from Timberlane said, “The high school refereeing I have experienced is some of the lowest quality anywhere. Compared to club refereeing, this has been a much lower overall quality.” Another high school athlete who plays for Philips Exeter Academy in the ISL (Independent Schools League), on why he thought there were worse referees in New Hampshire than when he played in Massachusetts said, “I think it’s because New Hampshire has a smaller soccer community as far as club teams are concerned. Therefore, the NHIAA and ISL doesn’t put as much focus on the quality of referees, relative to Massachusetts which has a larger amount of clubs and larger need for quality referees.” This clearly is a problem with just New Hampshire high school soccer. After asking a player for Framingham High School who plays in the MIAA (Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association), he described the overall quality of the refereeing throughout the season as “pretty good”, which is much higher praise than the NHIAA referees received from players on various teams throughout New Hampshire.
One of the main issues that the players have with referees is their seeming unwillingness to give a player a yellow card for a careless tackle. Another is their reservation of yellow cards for serious tackles that endanger the safety of the opponents, which according to the laws of the game, should be a red card. One of the reasons for this could be the fact that the NHIAA Soccer Procedures Handbook states, “If a player/coach receives his/her third yellow card of the regular or post-season a, one (1) game disqualification will be given.” Yellow cards are a part of the game, and this rule makes them much more harsh of a punishment than they are meant to be. Yellow cards are something that you want to avoid in soccer, but if you get one it isn’t the end of the world. This yellow card accumulation rule in the NHIAA causes referees to give fewer yellow cards, allowing certain players to continue playing in a more reckless manner. This is due to the fact that they are subject to no repercussions aside from a free kick, which is not adequate to deter the player from continuing on in this manner. On this subject, the Timberlane player says, “Although the coach usually will talk to the player if he is playing too aggressively, if he doesn’t, the player isn't deterred from playing in the way he was before which would mean there is a chance of someone getting hurt.” These rules make for much more lenient refereeing, allowing for reckless play to cause injuries and go unpunished. The Framingham High School player noted that there aren’t any personal yellow card accumulation rules for the MIAA that he is aware of and also that in his season he felt that the referees had appropriately given cards.
But what is the solution to all of this? Is there a way to help resolve the refereeing issues throughout this state? We need to acknowledge that yellow cards are a part of the game, and although you shouldn’t try to get yellow cards, they happen. Awarding more of them for deserving violations, instead of just a foul or nothing at all, would increase the safety of the high school game in New Hampshire. One way they could encourage referees to do this would be to increase the number of cards a player has to get to six, for instance, before a one game suspension, along with increasing the number of cards a team has to get before they are prevented from playing in the playoffs. The unnecessary yellow card rules for the NHIAA need to be amended to repair the safety and integrity of the game.
Tommy Cissel is a Derryfield Senior and a Lamplighter Staff Writer.