Football Association chiefs will seek an urgent meeting with league managers to try to get their 'Respect' campaign back on track after being disappointed by the latest outbursts against referees.
Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson was charged with improper conduct last week for coming onto the pitch to remonstrate with match official Mike Dean, while Newcastle manager Joe Kinnear is likely to face similar action after yesterday labelling Martin Atkinson "a Mickey Mouse referee".
Now the FA are seeking meetings with the League Managers' Association (LMA) and individual managers to shore up the Respect programme.
FA director of governance Jonathan Hall said: "It has been disappointing to witness various incidents of managers publicly criticising referees over the past few weeks.
"The FA will seek to meet with the LMA and individual managers regarding the Respect programme as soon as possible and offer them a further opportunity to raise any concerns.
"The LMA were fully involved in the pre-season consultation and we welcome their continued support for the programme."
Hall said managers needed to be more understanding of match officials.
He added: "We accept that it can be very frustrating for managers when an incorrect decision is taken, but no referee does so deliberately, just as players and managers do not deliberately make mistakes.
"It is easy to support officials when a decision goes your way, the real test is the ability to show understanding when a call goes against you.
"There are already various official channels for managers to provide their views on refereeing performances and managers are actively encouraged to use these channels rather than criticising referees through the media."
Hall insisted the campaign has had a positive impact.
"There have been some positive signs at the top end of the game, in particular the drop in instances of players harassing referees," he said.
"Additionally, we should also make clear that there have only been a small number of league managers who have chosen to publicly criticise officials on the field or through the media.
"This is a long-term commitment and the FA will continue to work with all other organisations to improve behaviour across the game."
The programme started after the FA consulted 37,000 people involved in grassroots football and were told that improvements in behaviour were needed.
Hall added: "There has been real progress at grassroots level.
"We will not give up on it and will continue to strive for that improvement at all levels of the game."
Now the FA are seeking meetings with the League Managers' Association (LMA) and individual managers to shore up the Respect programme.
FA director of governance Jonathan Hall said: "It has been disappointing to witness various incidents of managers publicly criticising referees over the past few weeks.
"The FA will seek to meet with the LMA and individual managers regarding the Respect programme as soon as possible and offer them a further opportunity to raise any concerns.
"The LMA were fully involved in the pre-season consultation and we welcome their continued support for the programme."
Hall said managers needed to be more understanding of match officials.
He added: "We accept that it can be very frustrating for managers when an incorrect decision is taken, but no referee does so deliberately, just as players and managers do not deliberately make mistakes.
"It is easy to support officials when a decision goes your way, the real test is the ability to show understanding when a call goes against you.
"There are already various official channels for managers to provide their views on refereeing performances and managers are actively encouraged to use these channels rather than criticising referees through the media."
Hall insisted the campaign has had a positive impact.
"There have been some positive signs at the top end of the game, in particular the drop in instances of players harassing referees," he said.
"Additionally, we should also make clear that there have only been a small number of league managers who have chosen to publicly criticise officials on the field or through the media.
"This is a long-term commitment and the FA will continue to work with all other organisations to improve behaviour across the game."
The programme started after the FA consulted 37,000 people involved in grassroots football and were told that improvements in behaviour were needed.
Hall added: "There has been real progress at grassroots level.
"We will not give up on it and will continue to strive for that improvement at all levels of the game."
Copyright (c) Press Association
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