Monday, October 13, 2008
Uefa trials multi-referee system
Uefa is looking at a new refereeing system whereby the referee is helped by four rather than two assistants.
Europe's governing body has been trialling the idea at an Under-19 tournament in Slovenia where two extra assistants were behind the goalline.
"The goal is to have one referee with more eyes," Uefa president Michel Platini told the Uefa website.
"We do not want to change the philosophy of the game - we do not want to have two or three referees."
We had three pairs of eyes on the penalty box.
Northern Ireland referee Mark Courtney, who took charge of the Slovakia and Armenia game using the new system, welcomed the experiment.
"The important thing for the match officials is to always make the correct decision," said Courtney.
"With this system, we can quickly receive additional information from the additional referees, which we can consider as part of the thought process to make the final decision."
Europe's governing body has been trialling the idea at an Under-19 tournament in Slovenia where two extra assistants were behind the goalline.
"The goal is to have one referee with more eyes," Uefa president Michel Platini told the Uefa website.
"We do not want to change the philosophy of the game - we do not want to have two or three referees."
We had three pairs of eyes on the penalty box.
Northern Ireland referee Mark Courtney, who took charge of the Slovakia and Armenia game using the new system, welcomed the experiment.
"The important thing for the match officials is to always make the correct decision," said Courtney.
"With this system, we can quickly receive additional information from the additional referees, which we can consider as part of the thought process to make the final decision."
