NFF: NRA Boss Writes It. Requests for Referee Appointments to Be Released Early.
The Nigeria Football Federation’s (NFF) president
By way of
The Secretary of State,
Football Federation of Nigeria (NFF)
Kindly, sir
*Late release of the match appointment list for national competitions to members of the Nigeria Referees Association (NRA)
- With all due respect, the Nigeria Referees Association, or NRA, feels compelled to inform the Federation about the late match appointment announcements made to referees competing in national tournaments.
Gateway United will next face Stormers FC of Abeokuta in a derby at MKO Abiola Stadium, Kuto Abeokuta on Sunday 20th March, 2022
- Given the current challenges Nigerian referees encounter in getting to match locations because of the NFF’s tardy match appointment announcements, this information has become useful.
3. Although those active in the NPFL are not excluded, the referees officiating the ongoing Nigeria National League (NNL) and Women League (NWFL) are the ones most affected by this situation, which may be of interest to the Federation’s president.
4. According to reports from the several state referees councils that the NRA has access to, a number of the assigned referees either struggle to get to the match locations or fail to arrive in time for kickoff. Due to the short notice of the appointment, many people typically do not show up at the match venues. Additionally, data provided to the referees’ body reveals that up to 30% of those who worked extremely hard to get appointed to the aforementioned leagues have missed their games this season, compared to 60% of those who have missed their games.
5. The Federation may also find it interesting to observe that individuals who were able to arrive at match locations just before the start of the matches experience fatigue-related obstacles that hinder their officiating abilities because of the delayed appointment release.
6. Even worse, the NRA is concerned about the unstable security situation and frequent danger to life of individuals who travel in Nigeria at odd hours and has called on the Federation to take notice of this issue. A lot of NRA referees now travel at night because their appointments are released late. Most significantly, because of late arrivals, our referees assume the enormous danger of traveling at night during this time to enable them to meet up for matches at venues.
The president of the NFF should be aware that referees for the NNL and Women Leagues are typically given match appointments 16 hours prior to a game, and that they frequently have to travel more than 18 hours. In contrast to the 24-hour notice that members receive from the NFF, a referee in the NNL who is traveling from Ikom, Ogoja, and Calabar in Cross River State to Ogbomoso in Oyo State to officiate Crown FC of Ogbomoso needs three days’ notice to arrange their transportation to the game site. It is also regrettable to observe that NRA members took on other occupations within the brief period following the appointment’s announcement.
- The NRA respectfully asks the president to step in and address the negative impact of the late appointment release on the mental health of worried referees while they are officiating.
For the benefit of the game, the association will value the early release of the match appointment.
Please accept our best wishes in this regard.
In the Whistle, yours
Otunba Tade Azeez
The President
CC: 1. NFF Football Committee Chairman
- NFF Referees Committee Chairman
