The East Midlands Rugby Union Disciplinary Committee is extremely concerned regarding the number of cases of Match Official Abuse already reported to the Panel this season which is just 7 weeks old. Abuse of Match Officials (and this includes non-appointed/volunteer touch judges) on and off the field is totally unacceptable and shall not be tolerated.
As we are sure you are aware, there is a desperate shortage of match officials to cover all the matches played across the East Midlands. It is becoming increasingly difficult for the Referees’ Society to not only recruit new members but also to retain current members, and Abuse of Officials (from players and spectators) is citied as one of the causes of this.
Naturally, we should all be encouraging and supporting our Match Officials at every opportunity, as without them there would be no rugby! This support must come from players, coaches and spectators alike – you have a responsibility for the behaviour of all your members.
With this in mind, for all Proven cases involving Match Official Abuse arising from matches on or after 6th November, the EMRU Disciplinary Panel will consider a minimum automatic aggravation of 1 week (1 match for Age Grade Under 18 & below) over and above the RFU Sanctions as below.
Law 9.28
A player must not verbally abuse a Match Official. Verbal abuse includes, but is not limited to, abuse based on: religion, colour, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation.
Sanctions:
Low-end: from 6 weeks/matches
Mid-range: from 12 weeks/matches
Top-end: from 18+ weeks/matches
Max: 52 weeks/matches
In the New Year the situation will be reviewed by the Committee again, when we will hopefully be able to look back on an improvement regarding this issue and hope that we will not need to take any further action..
Will all clubs and schools please ensure this message is circulated to all players and supporters at all levels.
Paul McGuckian, EMRU Chair of Discipline
