PAUL DYKE has asked the FA to monitor teams with bad reputations - and then hit them hard where it hurts.

He also believes more players and referees should be prepared to take their assailants to court to seek compensation.

Local footballer Dyke, who played for Burridge and AFC Blues in grass-roots leagues last season, admitted: "I can appreciate that running a massive organisation such as the Hampshire FA means they cannot have officials at every game, or people to monitor every team's behaviour.

"But would it be too much to ask that teams with 'reputations' be watched every so often out of the blue to see what is happening?

"More cases need to be taken to court as these people believe that the football field is outside the law.

"Clubs should be fined massive amounts and points deducted for such play.

"I know the argument is that this is unfair to punish the whole team for one idiot's short fuse.

"But this will eventually lead to these players forming teams full of people who just what to play football as the idiots will not be allowed to join in fear of them costing their team points.

"Why not dock teams points - stop them getting promoted if needs be.

"Teach them we have had enough of this (behaviour) creeping in to our so-called beautiful game."

Dyke called on local league managers to take more responsibility with regards to instilling discipline.

"I know the referees can not be held responsible and I would like to see the mangers of teams with disciplinary problems be called into question," he said.

"If the managers substituted the thugs when they saw things happening then the players would soon stop these actions as they would no longer be playing.

"Instead you very often find that the managers just hurls abuse your way in chorus with the players."

Dyke contacted the Daily Echo at the end of a season in which one of his team-mates suffered a broken jaw in a match - the victim of an off-the-ball assault which is now the subject of a police investigation.

"The problem is if these things are off the ball the referee can not do anything as it has not been seen and so the player knows that he is safe," said Dyke.

He summed up: "Someone somewhere has to make a stand against people and teams like these.

"Otherwise the continued trend will be to play indoor 5-a-side where players know that they are continually being watched and scrutinised and the national game as a whole will suffer.

"I can remember when I was eight and first started playing football for an organised team.

"I was so excited to be involved in a sport which I had loved to play since I could remember.

"As a child it taught me to respect others, how to interact with people I did not know as well as keeping me off the streets and fit.

"The only arguments which used to surface were over who would take the odd free-kick or who would get the last orange at half-time."

"I just want to be able to go out and enjoy my football as if I was eight again without the threat of some 'thug' knocking me out."