Hindsight: Poor refereeing mars first round of Ghana Premier League

Mawuli Klu’s performance in Berekum Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Medeama S.C. encapsulates the current state of refereeing in the league.

The norm, the world over, has been that referees are criticized when they make questionable calls against one team.

In that regard, Klu has the unenviable distinction of being among an exclusive class of referees who manage to upset both teams.

Such was his performance that Berekum Chelsea coach, Samuel Boad could not hold back even if it meant risking a sanction.

”The officiating was really bad. I am someone who complains about officiating but today, I have to. They (the GFA Disciplinary Committee) can sanction me, I do not mind,” Samuel Boadu said.

Stephen Pius Gwirah, Medeama’s assistant coach, was too incensed by the officiating to have any words.

That is the kind of officiating clubs have to live with.

What has the GFA done in response to this malaise?

Next to nothing.

A few weeks ago, Maxwell Hanson was in the news for possibly the worst officiating you would see anywhere. He was the center referee for Dreams F.C.’s 1-0 win over Accra Lions.

The thing with Maxwell Hanson is that no one knows if he is just a crook with no semblance of conscience or integrity and so cheats teams at will, or if he is just an irredeemably bad referee who is not intelligent enough to interpret the rules in real time.

No one truly knows.

The irredeemably bad referee Maxwell Hanson

One thing is certain, the GFA, due to their own inexplicable tolerance for incompetence, have tolerated him well past his sell-by date.

Their continued deployment of Maxwell Hanson goes against the very ethos of the league – at least in the grand scheme of affairs, what should be the ethos of the competition.

More worryingly, the GFA appears more concerned about what is said about referees than doing something about the perpetually decaying standards of officiating.

Currently, Sammy Anim-Addo, a former Executive Council Member of the GFA, and current president of Young Apostles, is facing charges of ”bringing the image of the game into disrepute.”

He is likely to be fined, heftily.

But such sanctions, just like a million before, would do little in repairing the reputational damage inflicted on the league by poor referees.

For as long as Maxwell Hanson and his kind remain on officiating duties, for as long as the GFA does nothing to fix poor refereeing standards, the league will continue to lose integrity.

Daniel Laryea, a previously remarkably referee is also having a season to forget

For a league that struggles to attract viewership (including selling match tickets and television subscriptions), this should not be happening.

The GFA needs to be seen to be working to fix this problem.

Until last season, the GFA earned praise for consistently punishing referees by suspending them for non-performance and where necessary, demoting those found to have underperformed by the match review panel.

These days, the referee’s accessor has the responsibility of flagging non-performing referees and making recommendations to the GFA.

Still, the cancer of poor officiating persists.

As the league enters the homestretch, it would be in the interest of everyone if poor officiating does not take center stage.