Well, I refereed a lady’s football match at short notice tonight. Dont ever take money, and usually enjoy the run out, but being told by ladies not much older than your children that you are “a fucking bollox” (fair enough), but then “a cheat”, “a disgrace” that “you should be ashamed of yourself”, and that you are biased and “a prick” in the midst of an hour of constant abuse from both teams and both sidelines, I’ve decided to hang up the whistle. I drove home dangerously on the motorbike, my karma completely disturbed, feeling like @Smark after a trip to the hairdressers.
Why the fuck anyone puts up with it is beyond me.
The worst abuse by far was from a team to whom I awarded two pelanties and who won by twenty odd points.
I didn’t call a push in the back at one stage which looked just like a hand, and I was following the ball and didn’t blow up til it went dead about twenty seconds later, took absolute dogs abuse (with hindsight it was obviously a push, but the lass, who was a bit winded, did a decent impression of your man from platoon before recovering enough to scream abuse and then play the game out unhindered. Shortly thereafter, one of her team mates hurt her ankle, her own team played on and scored a point, before she really quite nastily rounded on me for allowing play to continue when she had a sore ankle (she also played on), at which point I came very close to abandoning the game, and probably should have done. Thing is, if you blew for every little thing, noone would gain anything from the game (a junior league game), so I try to play advantage. Its much easier to handle lads, but ladies I just don’t know.
I tell you, if my daughter had behaved like some of the winning team, I’d have gone onto the pitch and taken her home. I’d have been appalled.
I’m in very low spirits after that. The one evening noone is out usually also, so missed that.
The venom was quite something.
The winning team were, by and large, hateful.
Damned if you do and damned if you don’t flatty
Word of advice, call in both captains pre game for a chat or actually go to each squad warming up in future & explain any shit as per tonight won’t be tolerated.
Oh I tried. I called the captain of the worst offending team over, told her that I didn’t give up my evening to be spoken to like that, and one more comment from anyone, and I’d send them off, and that I was close to abandoning the game, but by that stage, the die was well cast. Its easy to speak to lads, I just can’t figure out that kind of stuff from ladies. Christian Brothers schooling I suppose.
I actually, genuinely, am quite taken aback, but maybe it’s the norm.
I once got a yellow card and a free reversed for saying “for fucks sake paddy, it’s like playing at old Trafford” to the ref. Never heard anything quite like this playing
I’m gone old.
You should have marched into their changing room and whipped out your Mickey and proceeded to do a chopper.
And then walked out without saying a word.
Pre game, pal.
Couldn’t have gone any worse if I did 
I think it’s the general sense of entitlement.
I reffed a few camogie games. Fuck. That. Shit.
Every time anyone opens their mouth. Free. Straight away. More lip. Move it forward. Keep doing it. They won’t be long about shutting up when their teammates are bitching at them
Get them turned on each other
What’s a chopper, buddy?
Ladies Gaelic was it pal?
I dunno how anyone puts themselves out there as a ref. An absolute thankless task.
I’d be writing a letter of complaint to their club(s), county board etc. telling them to go shit in a hat.
Typical snowflake. Blaming others for his own shortcomings as a referee. Be more in his line to focus on improving.
A disgusting manipulation of ones genitalia.
You’re probably right mate.
I’m sure I’ll feel better in the morning.
Sorry to hear that mate. Fuck em, get some sleep
That LANGER who reffed the cork /tipp match is due more
If it’s the Paddy I think it is, he’d book you for dissent but let you away with opening a lad.
That’s the lad alright 
Some man to give a team a nudge in the right direction too, having been on both sides of it. Good ref though. It’s funny, playing I didn’t like him, but trying your hand at refereeing gives an appreciation for what an utterly impossible task it is. I’d rather crawl over cut glass than referee a senior IC game. I’d never open my trap to a ref again, other than the usual bit of mild vexation because you’re hot and bothered, which even that id try to curtail.
I clearly just can’t get the psychology of a womans game. Lads settle down when they’re winning well. The further this team got ahead, the more spiteful they became. Kept me awake last night, it was bizarre. Refereeing a ladies junior league game was just about the worst bit of the week to date, and my work is fucking horrific at times