Corona League president Mike McGrath believes the family atmosphere that surrounds the league is the main reason officials are falling over themselves to referee games at BAA Field.McGrath also said the league could consider expanding to include a second-tier in the near future, with inquiries coming in on a regular basis from teams desperate to join.In stark contrast some clubs in the Premier and First Division have struggled to field teams this season, and the Bermuda Football Association have recently had to re-arrange league matches at the last moment because of a lack of officials.Only last week the BFA announced that a Premier Division match between Boulevard and Somerset Eagles was being postponed ‘due to a severe shortage of referees’.Meanwhile the Corona League have too many referees at their disposal, with all matches allocated since the start of the season, and three or four officials on stand-by should an emergency arise.“We are very lucky with the Corona League that we have such a dedicated band of officials guided by Richard Knight that give their all and work with each other to stop us from missing officials at games,” said McGrath.“I think this comes from the feeling that the Corona League is a family that includes players, officials and managers who can come together socially, as well as on the field, which helps to break down barriers.“Being a referee is probably the hardest and least thanked position in football, which is probably the reason that it is so hard to recruit them.“But the official in the middle realistically misses less calls than the players do passes.”When the Corona League was first created in 2009 the BFA announced that any referee that worked for the new competition wouldn’t be allowed to officiate in their games.In the second season of its existence, the Corona League is now arguably more popular than its more well-established counter-part, has expanded to incorporate a North Village side, and has more teams knocking on the door every day, desperate to be a part of the league.“The obvious difference between this year and last year is the new team in North Village Corona Rams and the extra game on a Saturday night,” said McGrath.“I think we have managed to maintain the best parts of the league and improve on what we offer.The teams now don’t have a bye week that made a team miss out each week which was thankfully the biggest complaint we had last year.“Expansion has been talked about as we have had several inquiries about joining the league but I don’t think it will be immediate.Realistically, going past 12 teams would require a second tier and that would require a second field that could handle the usage of our league, and we want to make sure the league is as good as it can be before we start to expand.”One thing McGrath is sure to want is a slightly tighter title race than he has seen so far this season.Vasco are undefeated so far this season, are 12 points clear at the top, and seem destined to win with plenty of games to spare. Not that the president views Vasco’s dominance as a bad thing.“Most teams in the league have taken a step forward this season,” he said, “but it has to be said that Vasco has taken the largest.“But every player wants to put themselves up against the best to see how they do.“It’s great to have talented players in the league and every team or player wants to see if they can stop those players from playing against them.”