The likes of Tevita Makasini and Lata Tu’ifutuna have taken part in prestigious events on the world stage in recent years and TFA referee development officer Tevita Vea is confident the nation can produce many more quality whistle blowers.
To help make that a reality, the focus is being placed on building foundations for the future and the school programme will be a key part of this initiative.
“The idea is to develop referees and assistant referees from the younger generations,” Vea says.
“We are targeting young 14 and 15-year-old students. If we can work with them for six to seven years, they should then become good match officials.”
The TFA referee department is currently negotiating with various schools on the main island of Tongatapu and Vea is pleased with the nature of the feedback.
‘Api Fo’ou College, Tailulu College, Liahona High School and Tupou College have already signalled their intent to become involved and will include the refereeing lessons in their curriculum next year.
“It’s a positive start for us and we are looking forward to starting teaching by the beginning of the new academic year,” Vea says.
The plan is to run a theoretical section of the course during the first two semesters and then introduce the practical aspect by the end of the year.
The students will sit an exam at the conclusion of the programme with those who pass and have an interest in refereeing then getting the chance to proceed to the next level.
This second phase of the programme will be held at TFA headquarters in Loto-Tonga.
The aim for the budding young match officials will be to follow in the footsteps of assistant referees Makasini and Tu’ifutuna, who ran the line at the FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010 and FIFA Women’s World Cup Germany 2011 respectively.
The TFA currently uses the services of 23 active referees.
For more on Tonga football go to www.tongafootball.to

Share