Mr. Sean Slattery:

On behalf of the Irish Soccer Referees Society, I thank the committee for its invitation to the meeting. There has been much media attention recently regarding the continued nationwide verbal abuse of referees and threats of violence towards them in a number of sporting codes. My own reference point is the Irish Soccer Referees Society, which comprises almost 1,000 members nationwide in our 27 branches, with members in every county.

Thousands of matches take place every week, providing a vital recreational outlet for many thousands of players, parents and spectators. In some of the more socially deprived areas, this is sometimes the main outlet for young people, and our members gladly play their part. The downside is when banter is replaced by insulting, foul language, sometimes followed by threats of violence directed at the referee. In 99% of games, referees are on their own at the venues; it is only at the top level of schoolboy or girl and amateur football that assistant referees will be present. The effects of this type of behaviour can be very demoralising for the referee, and when this becomes a regular event, many of them decide enough is enough, say to themselves they do not need this in their lives and retire from the game. Even worse is when assaults occur. In Dublin, there have been three in the past three months. In these instances, the players were suspended for 12 months, the minimum suspension allowed for under FAI rules.

The question being asked today is what the State can do to improve the situation. We have always recommended to our members that if they are assaulted, they should report the matter to the Garda, but in most cases this does not happen, possibly due to the fear of recrimination. Another factor we have noticed over the years is that when cases are reported to the Garda, the judicial process seems to take a long time. Perhaps the State could help by encouraging a more urgent response from our lawmakers when such threats or assaults are reported. This, in turn, could lead to our members having more confidence reporting such incidents. If this happened, the people involved in this behaviour might see there are real consequences to their actions.

We are open to any suggestions that may arise from this meeting and look forward to any further engagement that may follow.