Malaysian referee, Suhaizi Shukri on Sunday became the first foreigner to officiate an Indonesian Super League match as part of an experiment to improve the domestic game.
In the match Persija Jakarta defeated Persiba Balikpapan 5-1 to move into the top three of the ISL. with a thumping 5-1 victory over Persiba Balikpapan.
Judging by this one match held at the Gelora Bung Karno, seems to be a success.
Following repeated protests from clubs about bad refereeing by local officials, the league administrator, Liga Indonesia, announced in January that it planned to use international match officials.
Suhaizi was the first overseas ref to be entrusted with the job, and Bambang Irianto, the director of referees for the Indonesian Football Association (PSSI), said more would follow.
“We’ve been asking the Asian Football Confederation to recommend more referees to officiate games here. It’s a part of our efforts to improve the league,” Bambang told the PSSI Web site.
PSSI secretary general Nugraha Besoes said Australia, Malaysia and Singapore had already agreed “to each send 10 referees for the Super League.”
The game passed off without major incident and Suhaizi was delighted to have been chosen to officiate the match.
Persija coach Rahmad Darmawan said it was about time the domestic league made use of foreign referees.
“I don’t think it’s about the quality of local officiating. It’s just that they are under great pressure from the fans and sometimes they can’t handle that,” he said. “This development will hopefully encourage [local] referees to improve their standards.”
Suhaizi officiates in Indonesian Super League
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