The Tonga Football Association (TFA) hosted a three-day Referees Instructors course as part of their continuous effort towards professional development.
Led by TFA Head of Refereeing Tevita Vea it was the first time Instructors from outer islands ‘Eua, Vava’u, Ha’apai and Tongatapu across football, beach soccer, futsal and fitness came together.
Wednesday and Thursday was full of match analysis in the form of video quizzes and practical sessions followed by presentations through Zoom calls and fitness tests in between.
Friday saw all Instructors assessed and feedback was given before the participants travelled back to their respective islands on Saturday.
Vea said the workshop was a success and would become an annual event.
“This initiative brought our instructors up to date with the knowledge and skills on how to train their referees,” he said.
“We assisted them by giving them tools on how to change mindsets and run their own sessions using technology such as Zoom on a laptop, which is standard practice now with COVID-19 restrictions still active around the world.”
Kepueli Lea – a Fitness Instructor from Vava’u – is in charge of 16 referees in his region and attended the course.
“I’m grateful for the three-day experience I had,” he said.
“I learned a lot about my role and was able to reflect on what I needed to do next.”
Oceania Football Confederation Head of Refereeing Kevin Stoltenkamp said it was great to see Tonga adopt the ‘teach the teacher’ methodology throughout their course.
“Getting the instructors to learn and present will ensure they will all apply the concepts that are consistent with FIFA education and teaching,” he said.
“Tevita Vea must be complimented for this initiative and I would like to acknowledge the support from TFA’s Executive Committee for their ongoing support for referee development in their country.”
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