by Scott Kidson

Something that I have had experience with from both sides of the fence is report writing. I (thankfully) haven't had to send off too many players in my time as a referee, nor was I sent off much in fifteen years as a player - twice I think and both were, of course, debatable.

Mostly, the experience has come as an administrator. And boy have I seen some shocking reports. Perhaps you could forgive a referee for not knowing what to put on the report because they don't have to fill them in very regularly.

So I'm going to go give you a guide to writing reports. Hopefully, you don't get a lot of practice at this skill, but on the odd chance you do need to write one, you'll have the tools at hand.

There is an incident and send off report template in the "forms" section of this web site. Go and take a look if you need to, just so you get a feel for the type of information you'll need.

Most referees get the right man, know the team they are talking about, along with the competition and all the information for the top of the form. That doesn't seem to be the problem. It's that big block of blank lines at the end of the page that causes the issues, it seems.

I reckon there are five major mistakes the referees can make when they pull out the pen and paper.

1) You don't have to fill the page.
When entering a report, you simply have to recount the event that led you to show the card/report the incident. If it was a card, you should note the send off offence that was tied to the action. What happened in the 20 minutes prior to, or after the incident isn't required in your report. Keep it to the point. If that takes you three lines to convey, take just three lines.

2) Don't make yourself out to be a psychic.
Don't write "Mr X took exception to the opposition player's tackle so next time the opponent got the ball he kicked him". You can't be sure what was in the player's mind or the reasons behind the player's actions. You don't know that for certain. What you do know is "in the 19th minute, Mr X kicked player Y."

Whether you thought it was a revenge attack for an earlier foul isn't important when writing the report. It may be a little different if it's direct retaliation - "player X hit player Y, then player Y hit player X". But did you notice I didn't write "so player Y hit ..."? Using the word "so" would imply I knew the reason for the action. In this case I can take a pretty good guess, but I don't know.

3) Stick to the facts.
If you don't see an incident you can't send a player off. Likewise if you don't see an incident, don't put it in your report. "But he kicked me first ref" doesn't mean you need to say the player was retaliating in your report.

Just to reinforce it, you only need to include incidents in the report that directly relate to the reason for showing the red card. In the case of a second yellow that means making a quick reference to the first. For example: "... I showed Mr X a yellow card for unsporting behaviour. As Mr X had already been cautioned for for dissent earlier in the match, I showed him the red card and sent him from the field of play."

4) Send offs ARE NOT incident reports.
When writing a send off report, events that aren't connected to the send off are irrelevant. If the player "gave you a mouth full" in the car park afterwards, it should not go on your send-off report. That's a separate incident report.

The send off should only deal with the facts relating to why you showed the red card. Nothing more. If subsequent to the card being shown, the player does something else, don't write it on the send off report, make out a separate incident report and include the details there.

5) Use the Laws as your writing style guide.
There are only a limited number of situations that entitle you to show a card. Make sure that you know which one it is both when you show the card, and when you write the report. He didn't get a card because it was a late tackle. He was shown the card for serious foul play (red) or unsporting behaviour (yellow). He wasn't shown red for striking, it was for violent conduct. Striking only gave his opponents a direct free kick.

So take that wording into your report as well. "Mr X slide tackled the opposition player well after the ball had left a reasonable playing distance. I deemed this to be serious foul play, showed him the red card and sent him from the field of play". You've tied up the act that caused the card with the offence from the book that required you to eject the player.

Two other pieces of advice may help too. If you can, avoid writing your report at the centre. Let everything settle, come home, write your report while you're thinking clearly and not possibly still wrapped in the emotion of the event. You can look at the Laws if you need to, to clarify your wording without looking like you were unsure.

It also means you can create a copy for your personal records, your referees' association and your football body. There is less chance of your report getting lost that way. [Ed: This site will soon have a caution, send off and incident submission page.]

And lastly, if you need help, don't be afraid to ask. Your state coach or more experienced referees will surely have no problem giving you a few pointers. A badly written report may allow player to escape the punishment he should have received. The judiciary panel haven't seen the incident and rely on what they read to make their decision.

So next time you need to write a report, keep it to the point and make sure you clearly define the actions that led you to show the card and the reason in the Laws under which you lifted it above your head. Don't be afraid to pull out the Law book to get the exact wording.

Adding unimportant detail can give the player grounds to appeal the decision. Using the Laws on the other hand will clearly show why the player needed to be sanctioned.

Editor's note: Scott Kidson is a New South Wales referee whose recent appointments have included the Open Men's final at the FFA National Titles. His remarks were used with permission.

Have your say on this opinion. Send an "E-mail to the editor" through the feedback form.