A 12-year-old Sikh boy left a football match “nervous and distressed” after the referee ordered him to remove his patka, a lighter version of the Sikh turban.Metro Éireann understands that the game in question took place on the afternoon of Saturday 29 November near Ashbourne, Co Meath. Before the match began, the referee had ordered that players take off the headgear that many were wearing to protect themselves from the cold.
As the match started, the Sikh boy was still wearing his patka, and five or ten minutes into the game the referee stopped the match and told him to remove the religious headgear, which he termed a “hat”.
“He shouted at the boy three or four times to take it off,” said one witness who did not want to be named.
“[The referee] asked me whether the team had special permission for the boy to wear headgear during a game,” commented Sean Walsh, manager of the under-13 team at Hillcrest soccer club. “I said that we have never sought any special permission because the boy has played football for nearly four years and there was never a problem.
“The referee said he would report the matter to the league, I said, ‘Okay, go ahead’ and then the game went on.”
A number of individuals, including some of the boy’s team-mates, apparently attempted to explain the religious significance of the headgear to the referee. In the end, however, the boy left the game at half-time of his own accord.
“He was so nervous and distressed after the referee shouted at him,” said the boy’s father, Surimber Singh. “He embarrassed him on front of all his team-mates.”
Singh signalled his intent to file a formal complaint to the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) regarding the incident, while Sports Against Racism in Ireland (Sari) has said that the matter “raises questions” about the FAI’s implementation of its anti-racism plan.
The boy’s club manager is also determined to seek redress. “I have asked the secretary of the club to issue a strong protest in connection with the referee’s belligerent and ill-advised manner, which exposed the young fella in front of everybody and caused him a great deal of embarrassment,” said Walsh.
The name of the referee is known to Metro Éireann, but he could not be contacted for comment by press time.
“To my mind he dug himself in a bit of a hole and was trying to get out of it with a straight face,” added Walsh, in explanation of the referee’s actions. “He seemed to think the kid challenged his authority by refusing to take off his turban and was determined to make him do so.”
According to Sari, one provision of the FAI’s anti-racism plan stipulates it should conduct regular training with all its referees to raise their awareness of intercultural issues. “In this case the referee should clearly show himself a red card,” said Sari’s Ken McCue.
The FAI’s intercultural co-ordinator Des Tomlinson said that he could not comment on the case before a formal complaint is received and is properly investigated. He said that anti-racism training was “in place” within the association.
Patkas, or Sikh ‘sports turbans’, are worn by numerous players and referees throughout the world, most commonly in India and Britain.
