The Chairman of Nigeria Football Federation’s Referees Development Committee, Faith Irabor, has promised improved officiating during the 2024/2025 Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL).
Irabor gave the assurance on the sidelines of the Cooper test and training for referees in Abuja at the Moshood Abiola Stadium. She said that the changes in officiating would be in the area of Off-side and handball.
‘It is only a deliberate handball that will be penalised. This is because if the ball hits the hand that is in its natural position, no foul will be given,’ she said.
The chairman of the Nigeria Football Federation’s Referees Development Committee, Faith Irabor.
‘If you watched the European Championship, you will discover that the referees did not punish players for handballs that are not deliberate,’ she added.
‘So the training among others is to educate the referees that when the hand is in its natural position and the ball hits it, the rule of the game has not been violated.’
Irabor said that the essence
of the test was to ensure that the referees are at alert mentally and physically to be able to make the best of decision. She said that referees that were fit were dropped in the batch A training of the referees which started on August 19th.
According to her, about 80 per cent of the referees that participated in the first batch of the test and training passed while 20 per cent dropped.
Source: Voice of Nigeria