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Wisdom from Abroad
A co-worker of mine, of Japanese descent, shared a tidbit of wisdom from that exotic isle. His grandfather had told him “A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others.”
When I asked him to clarify further, he said that this is a way to be open to the opportunity to learn-even in the most unusual of circumstances. I’ll share an example.
A month or so ago, I was watching soccer from Argentina, where my family is from. Right now it is midsummer, and the leagues take a short break, with warm-up tournaments before beginning the fall season (seasons are reversed in the southern hemisphere).
I was watching what is the most intense rivalry, Boca Juniors versus River Plate. Yes, they speak Spanish in Argentina, but the Irish brought the game there, so many clubs still have English names (people laugh at Newell’s Old Boys and Chaco For Ever names).
I saw a rather bizarre set of circumstances-I saw what I thought was a misconduct committed by the Boca Juniors forward.
As you can see, Martin Palermo, the Boca Juniors #9, seems to hang on to the crossbar just as he scores the goal.
You may laugh…but I didn’t watch the rest of the game. I went through all my material to see why the referee (a very experienced FIFA international referee) allowed the goal.
I found some related things in the ATR and some FIFA material, but nothing regarding this. Could I have been wrong? It does happen from time to time, but I pride myself on my memory and knowledge of the Law. Could I survive this blow to my pride and ego?
I did what all of us should do: ask someone who knows more than I do. Off I fired an e-mail to the US Soccer Referee Department’s “Ask a Referee” website. The question and answer are here: http://www.askasoccerreferee.com/?p=189
Even instructors and assessors must sometimes ask others for advice. There’s no reason why referees should not ask for help. Ask a reputable source-instructors and assessors are best, but experienced referees can also be resources. Be open to the answer-it may not be what you expect. Lastly, be prepared to apply the answer in your games-referees do things in different
ways. As long as the Laws are enforced, referees have a wide latitude in how they get things done. Take the advice, and make it work for you.
J. L. GIMENO
INSTRUCTIONAL COORDINATOR |
