National referees selected for football workshop

Muhammad Safawi Rasid
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KUALA LUMPUR – Ten national referees have been selected to participate in the ProReferee workshop organised by the Football Association of Malaysia’s (FAM) referees unit on March 30.

FAM, in a statement today, said the workshop was part of the Malaysia Professional Referee System (MProRS) project that had to be postponed following the cancellation of the Malaysia League (M-League) last season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The 10 are Mohd Izzul Fikri Kamaruzaman, 26; Mohd Faizuddin Ismail, 27; Tuan Mohd Yassin Tuan Mohd Hanafiah, 29; Mohd Shahrizan Mohd Solihim, 29; Mohd Khairulsyami Ahmad Khalidi, 29; Mohd Usaid Jamal 30; Nazmi Nasaruddin, 31; Mohd Amirul Aizat Mat Lodin, 31; Razlan Joffri Ali, 36; and Zulkarnain Zakaria 38.

“These 10 national referees will be shortlisted before being absorbed into the MProRS pioneer programme and will need to complete at least three ProReferee workshops in a year beforehand.

“The selection criteria for the MProRS pioneer programme include either A or B level of refereeing, as well as an average score of no less than the stipulated total, in addition to speaking, writing and reading proficiency in English,” according to the statement on the FAM Facebook page.

FAM also explained that the MProRS selection process would include evaluation of match performances, fitness level, match rules comprehension test, video test and a Dynamic Yo-Yo test.

According to FAM, initial planning by the FAM referee unit had been revamped, and referees would be gathered in a small development group.

The statement also mentioned that the referee selection for the MProRS programme was now in the second phase, which is the monitoring phase, while the third phase, which is the implementation phase, would begin after FAM have finalised the MProRS pioneer programme referee list.

The MProRS pioneer programme was launched on March 11, 2020 and is in line with the F:30 Roadmap to increase the number of professional referees by 2022.

Improved player

Meanwhile in a related development, Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) head coach Benjamin Mora has said that the national forward Muhammad Safawi Rasid is a much improved player after his three-month stint with Portuguese club Portimonense SC last season.

Mora said Muhammad Safawi had the best opportunity to learn by experiencing training with a team that competes in Europe’s top leagues and to understand the demands needed at the highest level.

“If Safawi did not improve after his time in Portugal, then it would have been a waste of time.

“He had the chance to go to another place to see how the training is and the demands, I think he knows what he needs to do,” he told reporters after the Charity Shield match last night.

Muhammad Safawi scored on his 24th birthday to help JDT retain the Charity Shield for the fourth straight season by defeating Kedah Darul Aman FC (KDA FC) 2-0 at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium here.

Muhammad Safawi moved to Portimonese SC last October but did not get the chance make his debut in the Primeira Liga and only appeared on coach Paulo Sergio’s reserve bench.

However, he made his maiden outing with Portimonense SC Under-23 (U-23) side but it ended in a 1-3 defeat to Sporting Lisbon in the U-23 Portuguese League competition.

Named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the 2018 and 2019 National Football Awards, he returned to Malaysia in December to join the Southern Tigers.

“He always makes a difference with set pieces, penalties, shooting at goal. For me, Safawi is a great player, great asset to JDT. Thankfully, we have him here back with JDT to help us win, and today (last night) was no exception, he played a good game,” added the 41-year-old Mora, who is from Mexico.

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