The Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Referees Department has chosen 26 referees from various regions to take part in the FIFA Refereeing Assistance Programme (RAP) and Futsal Referee Instructors Course, which opened on Friday at the Guyana Olympic Association (GOA) at Plantation Lililendaal, Georgetown.
The five-day training programme focuses on enhancing match officiating in both traditional and futsal football formats.
The October 20 opening ceremony was attended by GFF President Wayne Forde, FIFA Referee Development Officer Javier Santos, FIFA referee instructors Rohan Thobourne, Dianne Ferreira-James and Shane Butler and Concacaf Referee Manager Dave Miekle.
The diverse group of participants, including seven female referees, were selected from Berbice, Linden, Georgetown and Kamarang to attend the internationally recognised theoretical and practical training programme.
RAP has been at the forefront of enhancing the quality of refereeing through education and assistance, uplifting both traditional football and futsal in the region since 2008.
In his opening remarks, GFF President Forde expressed his satisfaction with the rise in female participants and urged the group to recognise the significant investment being made by FIFA and GFF in their development as game officials, and to give more than 100 percent.
“The game demands a lot of us regardless of which level we operate in the game, and in that spirit we have to be always willing to give a little more than what the situation might call for. I think if we all undertake and make a commitment to do that, the future that we all desire for football, we will all realise it with our collective effort,” Forde said.
He added: I want to challenge each and every one of you to acknowledge the huge investment that we continue to make and will be making in the future into your own development, and undertake to give some of that back to the sport. That’s an important part because football is still a work in progress in Guyana and for most of the region, and it requires the generosity and the benevolence of all of us to make it work at the level that we want to see it work.”
FIFA Referee Development Officer Santos said he has seen progress since his initial training session in Guyana in 2019, and reminded participants that the training serves as a route for referees to achieve international recognition.
“When I came here in 2019, many problems to organise the course,” Santos reflected, adding that “now we have seen the improvement (in the) numbers of referees, FIFA qualified referees as well.”
Santos shared that the course, which will be done on the FIFA Referee Education and Development platform is “giving opportunities to you as national referees…to be in international competitions.”
FIFA RED platform was introduced in December 2019 as a dynamic online platform designed to enhance the global learning experience for referees in football.
Over the next few days, referees will undergo assessments in game knowledge and receive training on the interpretation and application of traditional football and futsal laws.
Theory sessions will take place at GOA, while field and fitness sessions will be held at the Georgetown Football Club Ground. Certificates will be awarded on October 23.
