This is what referees really say to footballers during a game... 🗣️
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) April 18, 2023
A fascinating insight from Ligue 1! 👀🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/jfBcyhSe0g
Undoubtedly there is a gap in the market for a documentary of this nature. A series following officials around at various levels of the game would be interesting and might make a few of us a feel a bit more sympathy towards these pilloried individuals. The job of a referee and assistant seems a thankless task.
There is a previous example of a referee walking out to the centre circle with a hidden microphone attached. A famous experiment carried out in February 1989 that certainly made an impression and opened a few eyes as to what it takes to try officiate a football match. David Elleray was about to take centre stage.
With George Graham's Arsenal topping Division One, a trip to the Den to take on Millwall would be another big test of their title credentials. The hosts had lost just two league matches at home all season and were enjoying a fine debut season in the top flight. Three points would be a vital step towards ending Arsenal's 18-year wait for championship glory.
The match was significant for both clubs, yet it was about to become the centre of national attention when Granada Television got involved. Wanting to mic up referee Elleray for the fixture and film him refereeing the fixture on their Out of Order programme, the ITV franchise got permission from the Football League, PFA, and both clubs.
However, there was a small problem with this. "I don't think the players knew," Millwall skipper Les Briley admitted. "I only knew because I spotted the wires during the toss-up before the start." Arsenal midfielder David Rocastle was adamant that none of the Arsenal players were informed of the experiment.
"I'm very annoyed that I was not told, nor any of us, that the referee was wired up," Rocastle revealed. "If George Graham knew about it, he didn't tell his players. The Millwall players knew all right. No wonder they were running around silent, like saints. I knew something was strange."
Rocastle was honest enough to say that the Arsenal players might have reacted in the same manner regardless. Yet the fact that they were unaware of Elleray's hidden mic actually added some authenticity to the footage. Because come the end of the section shown on Out of Order on March 16 at 7pm, there was a big reaction to what had been seen.
Arsenal's players did not particularly cover themselves in glory. Losing 1-0 after a Jimmy Carter goal, their frustration started bubbling away, the pressure of both their immediate environment and the bigger picture adding to the tension. What followed saw the bleep machine go into overdrive.
David O'Leary was the first to receive a dressing down from Elleray, after the Irish international had sworn at a linesman after contesting a free kick given against him. "You do not speak to my linesman like that otherwise you go in the book," Elleray barked. "You accept the decision and clear off. Alright?"
Rocastle later went into the book after screaming "that's crap" at Elleray. "Come here," Elleray responded. "If you want a confrontation this is the way - and you'll go." Hilariously the referee then dismisses the advances of Lee Dixon. "Don't want you, go away," Elleray declares. Succinct but to the point.
The main discussion after the programme was a moment involving Arsenal skipper Tony Adams. After seeing a goal ruled out that had clearly crossed the line, Adams lost the plot. Yelling "it's a goal" in a voice that was getting higher and higher, Adams then let his frustration explode. Calling Elleray a "fucking cheat" was never likely to go down well.
Blowing his whistle furiously, Elleray beckoned Adams towards him, coming across every inch of the Harrow School teacher that he was. "Listen. Once we've given a decision...stand up," he begins, in a slightly patronising manner. "We're not going to change it. I'm not going to have you calling me a cheat."
"I'm frustrated," Adams responds. "OK, you're frustrated but there is a variation of words you can use and cheat is not one of them," Elleray retorts. "We may be useless but we don't cheat. Alright?" With that Adams is sent on his way.
Fortunately for Adams and his team mates, late goals from Brian Marwood and Alan Smith turned their fortunes around. But there was still a lot of Arsenal anger come full time. Graham decided to discuss a few contentious moments with Elleray post-match. Unsurprisingly, when the Arsenal manager saw a camera in the referee's dressing room, he swiftly reversed.
Arsenal may have earned a crucial three points, yet after the clips were shown on ITV there was a backlash coming their way. "Arsenal stars in TV shame" stated the Daily Mail headline, with many questioning whether the three Arsenal players shown should be charged with bringing the game into disrepute.
"We must not be made the scapegoats for the sort of industrial language used by professionals on a football pitch all the time," Rocastle appealed in a Mirror article under the headline "WE WERE CONNED!" "I'm not condoning the language," Rocastle added. "These things are said in the heat of the moment when the adrenalin is so high with so much at stake, and players in an emotional state."
A lot of Rocastle's anger was directed at Tommy Docherty. The former manager of too many clubs to mention had provided commentary on some of the key moments shown. "It amazes me that a player keeps harping on for two or three minutes after the incident - that cannot be good for the image of the game," Docherty said of the Adams incident.
Whether Docherty was the right man to discuss the image of the game was questionable. But Rocastle labelled him a disgrace. "He should know better. He has probably said much worse about referees during his career as a manager. He knows the score. The sort of tension involved in a game like that."
Although both the Football League and the PFA had given their approval, there was anxiety after the programme aired. "I'm concerned with the way the image of the player has been presented," PFA Chairman Garth Crooks stated. "It seems to have backfired."
"The programme highlights incidents of conflict without putting them in the context of a 90-minute game played in a nine-month season," Football League assistant secretary Andy Williamson added. But what about the main man at the centre of the controversy?
At the time, Elleray was happy with the match and the coverage. "This was a good impression given by the professionals, if you consider it was such an important game. There was no pushing or shoving, there was no physical intimidation." Docherty disagreed. "If that's a good one in the ref's eyes I'd hate to be around for a bad one."
Elleray's opinion changed over time, however. Five years later, prior to him refereeing the FA Cup final between Manchester United and Chelsea, Elleray recalled the experience. "We set out to make a balanced programme. They turned it into an Arsenal witch-hunt. The bleep suggested the player had sworn when he hadn't. When I watched it, I was boiling with rage."
Perhaps it was no surprise that the programme makers opted to show the juicy bits to the viewing public. After all, the Adams outburst was an open goal, if you pardon the pun. A boring 1-0 to the Arsenal would not have provided entertainment for those settling down in front of the television. The intense nature of Arsenal's visit to Millwall was a bonus.
Maybe someone should revisit this experiment, though. I am sure it would prove popular. With bleep button at the ready, and a lot of editing, you could get a full series out of this type of viewing. As a follow-up perhaps an inside the VAR rooms at Stockley Park would be a winner. Although with some of the horror shows this season, that would definitely need to be post-watershed.
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