REFEREE DEVELOPMENT

IN A TRUE SIGN OF THE TIMES, FOOTBALL NSW REFEREE NUMBERS INCREASED TO 5,215 IN 2021 DESPITE COVID-19 LOCKDOWN RESTRICTIONS.

With a number of high-quality courses that ran throughout the year, the introduction of online classrooms to facilitate online learning were the key reasons why there was a significant rise from the 2020 season.

There were over 450 successful participants of Football NSW Level 4 Referee Courses while, across all our branches, 33 referee upgrade courses were also run with over an incredible 400 participants. Following on from a solid 2021 season, there were also 13 referee assessor courses that took place, further strengthening the promotion, marketing and development of future officials in Football NSW.

Football NSW Academy The Football NSW Referee Academy saw 24 officials involved in the program in 2021. Although COVID-19 impacted several tournaments and on-field experiences, all match officials involved showed dedication and commitment to their learning and progression. Looking to 2022, over 100 nominations were received from match officials across the state for positions in the Academy. Congratulations to the 11 officials selected.

Since its inception in 2015, the Football NSW Referee Academy has produced a number of National Premier Leagues NSW Men and Women’s first grade referees with 12 alumni progressing on to the A-Leagues competitions.

Education and Training A number of programs continued in 2021, including the Referee Development Panel (RDP).

Online classrooms facilitated learning and engagement, even in lockdown, and fitnessbased training sessions were conducted inperson when possible. The Referee Assessor Masterclass was also introduced, a program designed to further educate and train existing referee assessors and coaches to be able to support referee branches.

The sessions involve game analysis both live and via video as well as presentations from Football Australia A-Leagues assessors on effective coaching of referees. Over 70 referee assessors/coaches have been involved in the sessions, from both metro and regional community referee branches.

Selection to National Panels

Over 20 officials from NSW were selected onto the A-Leagues Women and Men’s competitions for the 2021/22 season. Three officials were promoted from the fourth official panel to the referee panel, Tim Danaskos in the A-League Men and Rebecca Mackie and Isabella Libri in the A-League Women.

The A-League Women competition will also see Mikayla Ryan make her debut as a fourth official, and Maddy Allum and Amber Morris will join the panel as assistant referees. In the A-League Men’s competition, Sam Kelly will make his debut as a fourth official while Hugh Fenton-White joins the panel of assistant referees alongside Sarah Ho who has been promoted.

Photo by: www.facetphotography.com.au