With the new football season being thrown into top gear this weekend with the start of the Premier Division, the Bermuda Football Association are hopeful that local clubs will observe all the necessary procedures that will lead to an exciting season without any negative hitches.

The Bermuda Referees? Association president Richard Knight recently hinted that unless procedures required to ensure the smooth running of matches are taken, including security for officials and decent changing facilities, Bermuda could face another interruption with referees withdrawing their services.

This week BFA general secretary David Sabir reinforced the importance for clubs to follow those procedures, indicating that doing so will not only be satisfactory but aid in providing officials, players and fans with a safe environment to enjoy the game of football.

One of the biggest concerns to officials when they last withdrew their services was the failure of clubs to provide security to accompany officials on and off the field of play and also to provide the same officials with proper changing rooms and clean toilets.

?We know the clubs are appreciative of the need to provide a safe environment, one that is conducive for other teams and for referees and officials to prepare for a game the best they can. Obviously the focus being on clean changing rooms, the fields also need to be secured by rope or fencing, we need to have some sort of security protection which is something that the clubs agreed to a few years ago for the referees and players and spectators,? said Sabir

?The fans need to understand that bottles should not be brought into the grounds. We must continue to strive and be very vigilant to combat any negativity that may take place at the grounds.

?But the truth of the matter also is that we don?t want to start talking about withdrawing referee services, what we want to do is focus on the role that everyone has to play and just keep encouraging everyone to do their part.

?The clubs have to get support from the fans, the teams must stand up against anything negative that happens and at the end of the day if we all do it together, we all win together.?

The BFA realise that it?s a big job trying to employ all of the necessary security elements but they point out that it?s all for the good of the game. They also believe that where there is not sufficient financial resources to do it the fans can all use their good judgement as people and come to the game without trying to negatively impact what otherwise should be a very enjoyable occasion.

Sabir said the BFA were confident that sport will once again gain the extreme confidence of the public and that attendances around the grounds this season would prove this.

?The football season is shaping up to be exciting and quite a challenging fight for supremacy amongst the teams in the Digicel Premier and First Division.

Last year?s titles went down to the wire and it was exciting, not just in the battle for the respective titles but also in the battles at the bottom to see who was going to avoid the dreaded drop.

?With this in mind we know that the passion of the game runs very high amongst the players and the fans and, in some regards, club officials and therefore it is important that everybody takes the aspect of security and safety ? and most important the aspect of fair play ? as the focal point of what we do this season....and if we do all of this I am sure that we will see all of the same exciting developments for the title but we will also see a much happier environment during the football games.

?It?s imperative that people who come to the games recognise that we are there to enjoy the spirit of the game, this means we want to leave all of the social ill behaviour and bad attitudes at the gate.

?We certainly want to come and cheer our favourite teams, meet up with our old and new friends and enjoy the game for what it is ...the number one sport not only here in Bermuda but around the world.?