In all there were six, the traditional four (don't forget the fourth official), and an extra one behind each goal providing what UEFA have described as a 'human camera' to help the referee with incidents in and around the 18-yard box.
That was my idea: Michel Platini revels in his six-ref fiesta
Previous trials in
Slovenia and Hungary were a
great success and following more
positive feedback from Cyprus,
European football's governing
body could now introduce it to
the French League Cup as early
as next season.
Hard to believe third
division FC Sete - the first
side to win the French League
and Cup Double in 1934 - could
enter the annals of history
again with a group match against
the likes of Creteil.
Platini's special adviser William Gaillard enthused at the forthcoming 'historic' change, while Scottish referee Hugh Dallas, now on UEFA's rererees committee, insisted it would not change the role of the man in the middle, merely make his life easier.
Dallas told The Guardian: 'It assists with control of the penalty area. We know the penalty area is where most incidents happen,' while UEFA general secretary David Taylor added: 'The key is the communication system - There's a lot of talking that goes on between the officials. I've been wired up myself, you can hear the communication and the confirmation of decisions.'
And it seemed to work very
well, especially when Cyprus met
Georgia on Monday.
With modern day football so fast, refs tend to struggle to keep pace but in Achna those extra, wired-up officials gave referee Ian Brines excellent support when a 50-yard pass left him stranded and were even better placed to ensure it was a goal-kick when a striker went to ground after a challenge from the keeper.
So many refs, just who do you shout at? The five on-pitch match officials take their place in historical trials
Dallas, who hopes the new roles could extend the careers of officials beyond the current retirement age of 45, pointed out: 'It's amazing the different angle you have with two players running towards the goal rather than the usual angle a referee has.
'What we are doing is really introducing a human camera from behind the goal but we are still discussing about what the best way is for an additional referee to communicate with the referee - is it via the communications system, is it via a whistle, a flag?- We are still at a very very early stage.'
The decision on whether to introduce two additional assistants now rests with the International Football Association Board but both Taylor and Gaillard are confident.
History: England's Francis Lee is booked for a foul on Brazil keeper Felix in 1970 - the first World Cup in which yellow cards were used
It next meets in February and Gaillard said: 'We could implement it by next season. It's important that no rules, no laws get changed in the middle of a competition, we have to wait for a new season.
'In rich competitions like the Champions League the cost would be infinitesimal. I'm sure the Premier League could afford it too - but I don't know if they would take the risk of trying it on a major tournament.
'I think the Champions League might be a safer bet, because it's not concentrated on such a high-profile tournament in one month like the World Cup.'
A cautious Taylor insisted: 'We will experiment in real game situations first of all. Where we can see clear benefits though, after testing, it is something that we would hope would be introduced.'
Platini would rather have human cameras rather than use video technology, fully backed up by Gaillard who said: 'The camera is not a faithful observer of reality, you have no idea of the impact, the intensity of the violence.
'Only the referee can do that, he's right on the spot. Football is a free-flowing game, a goal not scored can lead to a goal scored and if you stop it like in American football every 30 seconds to figure out whether there was a foul we're not playing football any more.
'It's not the game we know, it's not the game we love. We have to preserve the game as we love it but protect referees from the second-guessing, which is often wrong.'