Twenty-five of Fiji’s elite referees and five Fiji assessors were put to the test at a five-day FIFA Member Association Refereeing course at Fiji Football Headquarters in Vatuwaqa last week.

The course was officially opened by Fiji FA senior vice president Yogeshwar Singh and led by FIFA Referee Technical Instructor Krystyna Szokolai.

Throughout the week, current trends and interpretations of the FIFA Laws of the Game were reaffirmed with a combination of theory and practical sessions.

“The referees were informed about some of the amendments to the FIFA Laws of the Game which came into effect on 1 June,” Szokolai said.

“We also went through some practical training sessions where we practiced real refereeing decisions on the field as well as their fitness,” she added.

“This is really important for their development.”

Szokolai said the main objective for the course was to improve refereeing and give much information as possible to both the referees and assessors make the correct decisions.

“It was important that the assessors attended because they needed to be aware of what we were teaching the referees,” she said.

“That way they are armed with same information when they make their assessments and that’s important, particularly with so many changes,” she said.

Szokolai now hopes all participants will work hard and use their new knowledge to improve the quality of refereeing in their respective districts.

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