With the new domestic campaign about to start match officials in the Premiership, Championship and Premier Intermediate League completed their pre-season training this week.
These preparations also included a full day training seminar for Premiership officials with on-field practical sessions for both referees and assistants.
Included in these preparations were:
* A presentation from Steven Mills, NI Football League Chief Operating Officer, on changes to the League regulations for this season.
* A detailed presentation on the new performance assessment system, RefPal, being used in the Premiership. This system is used by 12 other countries throughout Europe to evaluate the performance of match officials.
In addition, a new partnership approach - as seen at the Euros - to working with captains was discussed, and has also been subsequently presented to clubs from all three divisions.
Mike Riley, Irish FA Head of Refereeing, stated: "This approach complements the ideals of our Catch Yourself On campaign. There was a marked improvement in the behaviour of Premiership players as last season progressed and a similar improvement in the conduct of the technical areas.
"However, ensuring that match officials decisions are respected and that the technical area environment projects a good image for the game remains vitally important.
"The match officials will continue to apply the principles that made the Catch Yourself On campaign so successful in Premiership games and we will continue to work to cascade that throughout football in Northern Ireland.
"To that we can now add the partnership approach that worked well at the Euros. The captain, or the nominated outfield player if the captain is a goalkeeper, can approach the referee and seek clarification on major decisions.
"The referee will advise the captain of the rationale for the decision so that there is a better understanding, even if there may not be full agreement, on the pitch.
"This avoids the need for other players to speak with the referee and those who run towards the referee or protest will be dealt with in the same way we did last season.
"It should be noted that this is only for major decisions and that the captain should approach the referee in a respectful manner and actively discourage any team mates from approaching the referee.
"We will apply this approach in the Premiership, Championship and PIL from the start of the season and if it is successful will look to cascade this to other matches in due course."
