|
Advice to new referees
An effective referee is more than knowing the laws
of the game. It is more than knowing where to
stand. It is more than foul recognition. It is
more than mechanics. It is more than fitness. All
these things are important, very important, very
important. But they are not enough. There is an
extra dimension to becoming an effective referee.
What follows are 15 things to think about. Most of
these things are done unconsciously by experienced
referees. However, these things are what new
referees struggle with MOST. Read them, think about
them, and use them if they are helpful.
1.
Blow your whistle loud
The purpose of a whistle is to get attention.
Sometimes you want to blow it louder than other
times, but you always want to blow it loud enough to
be heard by people within a ten to twenty yard
radius (at a minimum).
2.
Sell your calls
Always act with certainty. Even if you realize you
are wrong, act with purpose and authority in
reversing your position. The surest way to lose
respect is to be uncertain.
3.
Be on time
If you are late, the game is late because of you.
If you are early and the game starts late, it
starts late in spite of you. Do your part to make
the game start on time.
4.
Have a sense of humor
Don’t laugh at anyone or make jokes where it is
inappropriate to do so and don’t be silly. Buy
wearing a yellow shirt and carrying a whistle
doesn’t mean you aren’t a human being. Humor is a
way of humbly accepting our imperfections. Send a
positive message about yourself and your attitude
about life.
5.
Have a presence
Every player on the field needs to know that you are
on the field and that you are dealing with things
that need to be dealt with. The most effective
enforcement tool you have as a referee is your
presence on the field. Be where you need to be when
you need to be there and do what must be done.
6.
Politeness matters
Nice guys may finish last? Who knows? Regardless,
rudeness is a sign of weakness. It takes a strong
person to stand your ground and respect even those
who are rude to your face. That person may not ever
respect you, but all those around you will. Those
people will see that you have a strong backbone and
great dignity because you are polite.
7.
Professionalism is important
You are being paid. Earn your pay. At the vast
majority of the games you do, you will be the only
person at the game who is paid to be there. You
must set the standard of professionalism. If you
don’t do it, then who will?
8.
Be who you are
Don’t fake it. Nobody likes or trusts a phony.
Every kid on earth can smell one. An artificial
person lacks the ability to honestly present
themselves to the players. If you fake it, the
players will not trust you because they will believe
you are insincere.
9.
Hustle is more important than talent
A talented person who doesn’t hustle diminishes the
advantage of the talent they have. A person with
lesser talent who is willing to hustle magnifies
their talent beyond the level of the talented
person. A person who hustles is remembered in a
good way. A person who doesn’t hustle seems lazy.
10.
Open your mind to alternatives
Listen more than you talk is another way to say
this. Realize that you may know more than any other
person at the game but you will not know more than
all the people at the game and you always have
something to learn. Sometimes from people who know
less than you. Being the expert does not mean you
are perfect.
11.
Be prepared to back up what you say
If you say to a player, take it easy; be prepared to
give a card next time. Tough words are easy. Tough
action is hard. If you aren’t willing to back up
what you say, you will lose respect from the
players, the coaches, the fans, and other referees.
If you back up what you say, you will build a good
reputation. If people know you mean business, next
time a card may not be needed.
12.
Open your eyes
Expand your field of view. Don’t just look at the
ball; look around at what else is happening on the
field. Don’t just look at the feet, look at the
waist and use your peripheral vision to see the
whole player. Change your focus, look at the eyes.
A player’s eyes will tell you what is important to
the player. Don’t always immediately look down
field, check back to where the ball just left and
make sure there isn’t more to do.
13.
A good personality really does cover up a lot
of ugly
Just because you aren’t on the field to make friends
doesn’t mean you are on the field to make enemies.
It is easier for players to accept negative
comments from someone who is likable than it is to
accept them from someone who is a jerk or a robot.
Barney Fife is funny on television and not funny on
a Soccer field.
14.
Don’t stop play without a good reason
Nothing destroys the rhythm of the game more than
constant whistling for trifling fouls. Yes,
sometimes you do need to stop play for trifling
fouls. Such as when a pattern begins to develop or
when players begin to take matters into their own
hands when you don’t stop play. But those are good
reasons to stop play.
15.
Be confident
No one ever accomplished anything by believing they
couldn’t do it. Don’t be a fool or step into water
you’re certain is over your head. But be willing to
challenge yourself, if you don’t challenge yourself,
you will limit yourself.
There they are - 15 more things to think about.
Like learning the Laws of the Game was not enough.
Think about this, becoming a referee is like trying
on a new style of clothes. At first, you feel
outlandish or silly or out of place. That’s okay
and normal. Don’t fret about it. Relax, think about
this list. You are not alone. Every referee
struggles with these things, even those that have
been around a long time and even those that referee
at the highest levels. Work on these things and you
will become a more effective referee.
COUE - CHARACTER - CONSISTENCY
Chary
Jim Green, State Referee
Courage, Character, Consistency
Courage
I think
any referee would agree that anytime we step on the
field to referee a game it takes courage. In any
given game, we are at risk to incur the ire of
players, coaches, and even parents. So how do you
develop courage? First, know the laws of the game.
Don’t just study the laws once a year when you are
getting ready to recertify. Review the laws on a
periodic basis so that you are always fresh on their
content. Pay special attention to the laws related
to situations that rarely occur in a game, so that
when you do encounter those situations, you are
certain of the right call. Second, take to heart the
feedback you receive from assessors and other
referees. Remember, assessors are trying to help
you improve as a referee, so if you ignore their
feedback, then you are missing an opportunity to
become a better referee. If you are a new referee
and haven’t yet received an assessment, don’t worry,
your time for an assessment will come. When you do
get that first assessment, see it as an opportunity
for you to get better, not as something you need to
dread. Third, be fit before you step on the field to
referee a game. There is a saying in referee
circles: be fit to referee, don’t referee to be
fit. On days that you do not have a game, hit the
road, track, or treadmill. You will find that you
gain a lot more respect from the players and coaches
when you are in good position to make those critical
calls. If you are not fit, you cannot be where you
need to be. So what do these three points have to
do with courage? If you know the laws of the game,
you implement feedback from other referees and
assessors, and you are fit, then when you step on
the field, you can have the courage to know that you
are prepared and ready to do a good job.
Character
What does it mean to have character as a referee?
First, I think it is a mindset that you take with
you to every game. It’s an attitude that you are
going to give your best no matter the age group or
level of competition. Second, it’s having a focus
to never let your performance be influenced by who
you know among the players, coaches, and even the
spectators. Of course, the best rule is to never
referee a game where there are friends or family
involved, or for some other reason you have an
interest in the outcome of the game. However, as
much as we try to avoid these situations, chances
are that you will at some point be called on to
referee a game where on some level you have a
connection to a player, coach, or you have some
other affiliation with one or both of the teams.
The challenge here is to call the game as you would
any other game. Never give in to the urge to make a
call that would help the team you have an
affiliation with. At the same time, don’t go
overboard in an effort to show you are not favoring
that team by being too harsh on the team where you
have a connection. I have often said of myself: if
I get to a point where I would let an affiliation
with a team affect how I call a game, then it’s time
to turn in my badge. Finally, character to me means
always maintaining your professionalism. Never give
in to the temptation to retaliate to a coach or
player verbally when you are being attacked. This
doesn’t mean to never raise your voice or issue
cards at the appropriate times. Certainly, these
are necessary elements that you need in your referee
toolkit in order to be effective. Be as firm as you
need to be to effectively manage the game, just
never lose your professionalism. The best way I
can say it is to remember a phrase from an old anti-perspirant
commercial: never let them see you sweat.
Consistency
Ask a player or coach how they judge the performance
of a referee and I would bet more times than not you
would hear the word consistency. So what do
we need to do to be consistent? First, work hard to
call fouls consistently for both teams. In other
words, if a certain action is a foul for one team,
make sure it’s also a foul for the other team. You
don’t have to referee many games before you hear the
phrase: call it both ways. We joke about this
phrase among ourselves; however, in reality, a coach
or player is usually trying to communicate the fact
that they believe a foul called on them was not
called on the other team, or, a foul not called for
them was called for the other team. Secondly, be
consistent in issuing cards. If we allow a hard
tackle with cleats up and only call a foul, with no
card, and then later issue a card for a play that is
virtually identical to the prior play, then we have
a problem with consistency. If a player tackles an
opposing player from behind, with no intent to play
the ball and we issue a yellow card, then we must
ask ourselves, if that’s a yellow card, then what
would it take to get a red card? You can bet the
players are asking themselves the same thing. If
players believe you are not consistent in how you
manage a game, then they will often take matters
into their own hands and certainly that can spell
disaster for us and the players. Finally, be
consistent in your appearance. Arrive at the field
early, with your socks pulled up, shirt tail in, and
shoes clean and/or polished. These may seem like
small things; however, your appearance lets the
players and coaches know that you take your job as a
referee seriously, and that you are there to do a
good job for them.
In summary, I take a lot of pride in being a soccer
official and I am sure you do too. We communicate
that pride to players, coaches, and other officials
by our courage, character, and consistently.
Remember RESPECT is earned and PROFESSIONALISM is viewed.
Respectfully,
Larry L. Polin
|
