Referees object to gaffe award nomination

The first edition of the Malta Football Awards has kicked off on a controversial note even before the start of the ceremony - the organisers have had to revise the list of nominees after two referees objected to their nomination for the 'Gaffe of the Season' category.

"The whole issue boils down to whether we are prepared to laugh at our own blunders," awards organiser Sandro Micallef told The Times.

Three footballers, who were also nominated for the same category, have, however, accepted to 'contest' the unenvied title.

Ten awards will be given out on the night, including those for 'best attacker', 'best foreign player' and 'best official', while televoters may vote for the most popular Maltese player of all time.

Manchester United and England stars Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt, together with former Italian legendary footballer Giancarlo De Sisti will be among the personalities present for the ceremony, being held at the Westin Dragonara Hotel on July 6.

After the nominees were announced on May 27, following a suggestion by some referees, the Malta Football Referees Association expressed disapproval.

Six referees who had been nominated for 'best official' threatened to boycott the event in solidarity with their colleagues.

Mr Micallef said the secretary of the referees' association had also written to the Malta Football Association to complain about the nominations.

A meeting was held between an MFA official, Mr Micallef and MFRA president Patrick Fenech, to iron out the matter.

A settlement was reached when it was agreed that the names of the two referees would be withdrawn.

The referees' association also agreed to end the boycott and that the six referees would still contest the 'best official' award.

Mr Micallef said he accepted the referees' request so that the awards would not get off to a bad start.

When contacted, Mr Fenech said he believed there should not be a particular category to condemn referees.

When it was pointed out that other countries held similar awards, Mr Fenech replied: "every country has its own different culture".

The problem lies obviously with the outlook one has on such an award.

"Why try to ridicule someone who is doing his job? We all make mistakes after all," Mr Fenech said.

Mr Fenech said the mistakes made by referees differed from those made by footballers, as the former need to make difficult on-the-spot decisions.

He said that objection was first raised by the two referees nominated for the 'gaffe of the season' category. Some journalists also expressed reservations about voting for such a category. But the referees nominated for 'best official' were the ones who insisted on a boycott should things remain unchanged.

The referees in question are Marco Borg and James Vella Clark, Mr Micallef said.

Mr Borg had shown a red card to the wrong Pieta' player, while Mr Vella Clark, who was assistant referee in the Naxxar vs Hamrun clash, was nominated for ignoring a head-butting incident, he said.

The other nominees for the 'gaffe of the season' award are Hamrun Spartans defender Graham Bencini who scored an own goal against his former club; Lija's Liam Mangion who scored no fewer than three own goals during the season; and Birkirkara goalkeeper Robert Savic, who had a disastrous one month spell in an otherwise fine season.

"It was never our intention to ridicule those nominated for the 'gaffe of the season' category (Paprata ta' l-istagun)," Mr Micallef said.

"We are trying to inject a touch of humour into local football. Sometimes it's good to laugh at ourselves, or else we risk falling into monotony."

Mr Micallef also co-presents Replay, a weekly sports programme with John Busuttil on Net TV, which often takes a dig at footballers and officials.

Several major international media organisations organise these so-called gaffe awards, including the magazines France Football and the Italian Guerin Sportivo.

Among those who have landed these uncoveted 'awards' in the past were Roberto Baggio, who missed a penalty kick in the 1994 World Cup final, and World Cup referee Pierluigi Collina - he with the shaven head - who controversially decided to go ahead with the rain-drenched match between Juventus and Perugia.