Extra officials to feature in A-League and W-League finals

Fifth and sixth officials will feature behind the goal in the A-League and W-League finals.

Source: Getty Images

The additional assistant referees have been successfully trialled in the FFA Cup and the extra pairs of eyes will provide welcome help to officials who have been battered by controversial calls in the past few weeks. 

The W-League finals start next weekend, and A-League head Damien de Bohun welcomed the implementation of the additional assistants.

“The technical standard and speed of play in the A-League goes up every season and this places additional demands on match officials," he said.

“Referees continue to improve as well thanks to additional coaching and fitness programs but in the split-second available to make decisions in and around the penalty area the extra set of eyes is extremely valuable.”

The additional assistant referees will be picked from the FFA's current crop of A-League referees, who are: Chris Beath, Matthew Conger, Strebre Delovski, Shaun Evans, Adam Fielding, Jarred Gillett, Peter Green, Kris Griffiths-Jones, Stephen Lucas, Alan Milliner and Ben Williams.

“FFA is constantly seeking improvements to enhance the A-League and is committed to giving the match officials as much assistance as possible to allow the referee to make correct decisions on the football field,” de Bohun said.

“FFA trialled the 5th and 6th officials during the Westfield FFA Cup and having an extra two match officials in the critical area around the penalty area and goal was crucial in the referees making a noticeable number of correct decisions. This trial will continue in the W-League Final Series, which gets underway next weekend.

“FFA has also made a submission to FIFA on a trial of video replays to assist match officials.”