Founded in 1960, the Cork Branch of the Irish Soccer Referees Society includes around 90 active members — including referee observers.
Notably, two Cork referees are part of the Fifa panel and officiate international matches across Europe.
Cork referees consistently secure appointments in prestigious competitions. Anyone aged 16 and over can become a referee — requiring fitness, enthusiasm, a willingness to learn, and dedication to their local refereeing team.
While mandatory workshops and annual seminars are part of the role, referees often face the ongoing challenge of abuse.
Patrick Osborne is an author, screenwriter, and has served as a referee with the Kerry Schoolboys/Girls League for the past 12 years.
He recently wrote and directed Two Halves, a short film exploring the impact of referee abuse and how it can affect a person’s home life long after the final whistle.
The film has garnered attention and has been selected for several festivals — including the prestigious Paladino d’Oro, the world’s longest-running sports film festival, set to take place in Sicily this December.
Referee bullying or harassment has included verbal abuse, physical threats, and online harassment.
Patrick experienced first-hand a threat of violence in 2023 — a first in his career.
“Fortunately, the other coaches intervened and the individual was removed from the grounds. I reported the incident, and the league was very proactive and issued a lengthy ban.
“The club the perpetrator was involved with also took swift action and he was asked to leave. Unfortunately, online harassment has become more prevalent.
“Spectators often record games on their phones and share the footage online, usually highlighting an offside that the referee may have gotten wrong,” he says.
“People then pile on with offensive comments and this can circulate for days, weeks, or much longer. People have unrealistic expectations of what one referee can do.
“I’ve been involved in soccer for over 40 years now, as a player, supporter, manager, and now as a referee so I’ve seen the game from all sides.
“The aim of my film, Two Halves, is to show the referee in action, then give a snapshot of what might be happening in their life away from the pitch.”
Thomas Sheehy is a referee based in Listowel, Kerry, and says: “Verbal abuse happens all the time depending on how the referee deals with it.”
“Players and coaches can be sent off, but when you are dealing with some parents — and really nine times out of 10 they don’t even know the laws of the game — I’m sure all over the country games have been called off over abuse.
“I’ve never been physically abused. The shouting, intimidation when I first started to get a decision in their favour was a joke and not the funny version. I just wanted the ground to open up and swallow me and for the 90 minutes to hurry up.
“Here I am eight years later and I love reffing. I still get a few things wrong, but I learn from it,” he says.
“It is always very emotive, but it’s probably got worse since post-covid … people have forgotten how to behave themselves.”
Gareth Clarke lives in Liverpool, and is originally from Derry. Gareth ran his own son’s football team and then ultimately his club (a sizeable 40 team grassroots club).
As the club’s chairman, he made the switch to be a referee and has just started his fourth season as a referee attached to Liverpool County FA.
Gareth says: “I have obviously experienced inappropriate behaviour within a club environment, dealing with internal disciplinary actions upon coaches, players, and parents — some of these related to their behaviour of referees.
“I have recently been awarded Liverpool FA Match Official of the Year award for 2024, which is an honour given that there are approximately 700 referees in the Liverpool FA, hopefully because of how I deal with situations.
“I have seen all forms of referees abuse. Thankfully I have not had any physical threats, but I do know that it does go on in the football grassroots world. Personally, I have encountered three instances of verbal abuse of football.
“My first encounter was when I asked a parent to stand behind a fence on a 3G facility I was at. A second time was when I was refereeing an U15 boys game.
“The final incident was from an assistant coach of an U10s team. I am the type of referee who likes to apply common sense and keep my cards in my pockets initially and diffuse brewing situations.
“The FAI is currently rolling out a module on only allowing the captains to approach a referee rather than having a group of players ganging up on a referee. I think that this is a positive step,” he says.
Kevin Harkin has written a book, A Game of Two Halves about his father Terry Harkin’s professional career in football in Derry. He has also had experience with refereeing.
“As part of the FA Respect campaigns, academy teams — linked to professional clubs — have a policy of roping off games to have parents stand away from the pitch and their child gets dropped if they abuse refs. But the players and coaches still have a go!
“The most they give to clubs is to give them a poster to stick up in their changing rooms for visibility, but it is as much use as an umbrella in a hurricane,” he says.
Gareth Clarke also shares that “there is a ‘don’t cross the line’[policy] and campaigns trying to protect referees, but I have to say the success of these is questionable”.
“Mindsets of coaches, players, and spectators need to change. We are constantly hearing that there is no game without referees.”
Paul Tuite lives in Ardmore, Waterford, and is a representative of the Irish Soccer Referee Society (ISRS) and their public relations officer.
In relation to awareness, he says: “The FAI Referee Department and the ISRS work very well together to raise awareness of respecting referees.”
“The FAI recently launched a Respect the Referee campaign which included social media promotion and promotion on electronic signage at the Aviva Stadium during men’s and women’s internationals.
“Also, in the last three years, both the FAI and ISRS have worked very well together to increase suspensions for anyone attempting assault or assaulting referees.”
In terms of how clubs could better educate players, coaches, and supporters about respect for match officials, Gareth says: “A great example of how things work was when a team was on tour from Ireland and it appeared that the players and coaches were used to getting things their own way. They played an academy team at Everton, and the Everton coaches basically said to the visiting team that one more instance of poor behaviour from them or their players then the match was over and they would never set foot in Everton again. The attitude immediately changed.”
Patrick adds: “Clubs need to ensure that coaches are qualified and keep up to date with the laws of the game, as a lack of knowledge can lead to confrontation. I personally think that it should be compulsory for all coaches to complete a referee’s course, and that part of this course should involve them refereeing challenge games to give them an insight into just how difficult a job it can be.
“If you have a toxic person at your club, the best thing you can do for all concerned is to get rid of that person immediately. Having a code of conduct policy in place makes this process a lot easier.”
Paul Tuite emphasises: “A better understanding of the laws of the game by players, coaches and supporters would make a huge difference. People need to recognise that referees are doing their best and, without them, there is no game.”
Gareth points out that while the FA has introduced initiatives like “silent weekends”, where coaches and spectators are encouraged to remain quiet, compliance is often poor.
The ultimate goal is to foster respect and greater awareness.
As Patrick notes: “Clubs need to promote respect for referees, take action when that respect is breached and let us do our job.
“I hope my film sparks reflection and helps everyone enjoy the ‘beautiful’ game.”
