RefBlog

"There is not one bit of you that I like"

Two ARs cannot carry the game if the center isn't strong enough - I know, I tried, and it just didn't work. I had a feeling things wouldn't be good as soon as I found out who the center was; he's a nice enough guy, but he's not a terribly forceful personality, tended to be out-of-position when he ran the line, and hasn't shown me a good eye for detail (he messed up a roster during check-ins for me twice). When it was done (a fight that ended up with three red cards, and refs from other fields trying to break things up), his response at half-time (yes, half-time!) was, "Well, these things happen every once in a while."

Yes, these things happen - but you should not be blasé about it, nor should it come out like this is a semi-regular occurrence. Ack!

I had a sinking feeling in my stomach within the first five minutes - both teams were yelling at him, and at each other, and he seemed blissfully unaware. Play was mostly in the opposite half from me, and I could pick up that the other AR (a State) was trying to carry the center. When play came in on my half, I did much of the same - I've never flagged so many fouls in my life. But ARs just cannot carry the game - even if we could keep it in control in our quadrants (and we both expanded ours quite a bit), it's up the center to work his, and card appropriately. He did card, but he also wrote people's numbers in the book when he wanted to remember them for later - yes, there's nothing wrong with that, except everyone (including me), thought he booked the guy - which made it a problem when the guy actually was booked later.

Then, the fight. I ended up flagging another foul in my area, and down came a foot on the fouler's ankle. It wasn't an accident, it was a stomp - and all hell broke loose. It was quickly apparent that breaking things up wasn't going to happen, so I ended up taking numbers; I ended up sending a guy off, who wasn't even involved in the initial fracas for punching another guy, and another for a caution - the other AR named two others players to be sent off; I'm not sure if the center had any of his own - we both sort of stepped in and said, "Here's who you need to discipline." And because we couldn't get him further away from the players to go over this, they ended up overhearing, which started a whole new round of crap between them and us. One player, a good foot or more taller than me, got in my face, after I listed one player to be ejected, was rather forceful in saying (I wouldn't call it yelling, but was he trying to intimidate me, hell yes), "There is not one bit of you that I like. Not one bit. Can you call anything against Green? I don't think you can. I don't think you can." Actually, I did (it wasn't a red, because the guy throwing punches was right in front of my face, and despite all the other players in the melee, he was the only once with a closed fist. But he wasn't in the mood to hear it, and frankly, I wasn't, either; if I cared what he thought, then I'm in the wrong job.

Now, I don't know if myself, or another referee would have been able to stop it. Being a playoff, if both teams are going in with the win-at-all-costs mentality, something will have to give. The closest thing I can think of happened in a professional game I saw later in the day: in my opinion, the center did a great job keeping things under control, no major mistakes - but there was one incident that I thought he fell a bit short. The home team was up 2-0 in the first half, and the visiting team scores a goal - a defender goes into the goal to collect the ball, and the goalscorer also goes in, and starts going after the ball. As a referee, you don't want this to happen, because it's a recipe for something violent, so you want to, if at all possible, get in between the guys and let the defender take the ball. Why? Because the attacker's not going to lose time even if the defender walks the ball the entire way to the center. Instead, it did get violent (not as much as in our game, but the attacker was thrown down to the pitch), and the defender was cautioned. Did he deserve it? Yes. Could the referee have done something to help mitigate the situation? Yes. Had the two still wanted to go at it, could the referee had stopped them? No. But was it more likely that the card would have been necessary had he gotten involved quicker? Probably.

But I don't think things were doing well enough in my game to help mitigate these things. As much as I ached to get in and do it, I can't from my position on the line - that's the center's job, and all I can do is second guess.

31 August '06 - 08:21 - - default| No comments yet - § ¶

First straight red of the summer

I had a first-round playoff in the men's 3rd division, and despite a red card coming out of my pocket, I felt like I was in control for the entire game. There were a couple of things I wasn't happy with: the first was a few balls out-of-play in my quadrant that I didn't get a good look at, so I made a best guess when the players from both sides went after the ball (in which case, even if I'm right, people are going to get pissed).

The second thing I wasn't happy about was some players from one team making comments out of earshot of myself, which caused some issues. The good news here was that I was able to contain it, and able to let the people they were commenting to know my situation. Apparently the term "Terrorist" came out, and a guy was threatening a letter of complaint to the league. My comment was that I couldn't help him because I didn't heat it, but yeah, he is welcome to, because had I heard it, there would have been a send-off.

The send-off I did issue was a bit odd. The team was down 4-1 about mid-way through the second half, and an attacker makes a tough turn through the left corner and back into the penalty area; the defenders wanted a foul, but I didn't see anything that looked inappropriate, let alone foul-worthy. The player loses the ball in the penalty area, and the defense does a poor clear; the same defender whom his teammates wanted a call four takes the ball in the upper-left corner of the penalty area, and the attacker slides in high, and way too hard. I pulled out my yellow card from my quick-draw pocket, but I held up on raising it. Most of the time I back-track from red to yellow, but in this case, the extra second I gave myself said the color should be red - I'm not sure I've done that before. What changed in that second? My thought on just how hard he came in, that it did cross the line into excessive force and not just reckless. So, yellow card still in hand, I go back pocket and eject the guy. Clearly, I missed something between those two players, although it may not have been at that corner challenge a few seconds earlier.

The guy I sent off did some complaining, but the rest of the team didn't - they scored another goal and looked very close a couple more times for #3, which they didn't make.

I think to be completely fair, I should have gotten one of the other players for mouthing off, but when I did hear them, they were provoked first by the other team, and they kept taking the bait - so I really couldn't do anything there, and couldn't do anything when they were the instigators.

29 August '06 - 22:49 - - default| No comments yet - § ¶

High School Rules Meeting - and no cheap shots!

I had a feeling, at least I seriously hoped, I wouldn't have to keep score of cheap shots like I have in years past. This rules meeting wasn't supposed to have coaches, so I hoped the presenter wouldn't be as tempted to play up to his audience as much. I skipped last year due to my upcoming wedding, and because I was just getting sick of dealing with the crap that comes from working High School. I came into the meeting feeling OK, but soon after it started, the feeling came flooding back.

Apparently they want us to think of ourselves as "Assistant Teachers" with the coach being the "Full Teacher". Teachers have enough crap without being subject to the kind of abuse we get - I wish the NFHS would get off this "Our soccer is educational" bullshit and just admit that it's a competitive sport, and that the rules changes are because of (1) lawyers, and (2) because we like being in control.

This meeting was specifically for going over the differences between USSF and NFHS play, which I thought was a good idea, and for the most part, was OK, if not particularly engaging. I think my biggest annoyance wasn't with the dead of having to deal with high school sports again (although how many games I'll do is probably minimal - I told my new assignor that I cannot work 5pm games, which is the vast majority of them), but the suck-up in the audience that continually kissed the presenter's butt and probably added about 30 minutes to the program. She did have one interesting thing that pretty much made up for it, it was the reason why people think you can't play the ball on the ground: it apparently comes from city-run kidlet leagues, who add this, and other rules, for safety reasons - none of them paying attention that the referees could stop anything dangerous with... the dangerous play violation.

I still have to fill out the (open book) referee test; and apparently because I decided to take a year off, I'm on "probation". Not exactly an incentive, is it? (more)

28 August '06 - 08:00 - - default| two comments, already - § ¶

No wonder he didn't talk to me

Comments are back! It turns out it was all my fault; but considering how high it is on the list of things to screw up, I think I'll happily accept the blame.

---

I ended up having the same center again tonight, doing another 1st division men's game. I think she did much better this time, she had much more of a presence on the field, which isn't to say she was perfect - she actually had a pretty difficult game. I had one of the teams last year in the middle - they normally want States in the center, but scheduling issues made that, and a full 3-man crew, impossible - I also had the same team earlier in the year, and they can be a handful. They like to work the ref and let out cheap shots, especially after they've been fouled (probably because they think they can get away with it).

She ended up letting seven yellow cards go, including one player with a pair. It was a tough game, but she came out OK, learned a lot, and hopefully will take it to help in the future (knowing her, she will).

There was one guy on the other team who I recognized, but he didn't say a word to me. I had him in the last unaffiliated game I worked, and he was talkative then, but didn't say anything. I found out why when I got home: he had just been banned for life from the unaffiliated league. When I had him, he had just gotten off a two-year ban, but couldn't last three weeks after coming back. Apparently he earned one yellow card four minutes into his first game, then clocked someone from behind on the head, knocking the guy out, in another - and he knew that people would be watching his games beyond just the referee.

I guess that's why he didn't say anything.

25 August '06 - 07:43 - - default| No comments yet - § ¶

Test Entry

Foo (more)

23 August '06 - 08:01 - - default| two comments, already - § ¶

There's a rule I'm not supposed to talk?

I have to admit it, I'm jealous. It's too bad that you can't wear your USSF badge on unaffiliated games, because the more I see people with State badges, the more I want one.

I was running a line on a first division men's game for someone who just got her State badge and was trying to get used to doing first division men's games - especially since she got her high school schedule, and got all girls games (greaaat). So she decided that she wanted to get in as many men's games as possible, and stretch her abilities by doing top level - good for her on both counts.

I had a line that was from my end pretty unremarkable. The game itself quickly became lopsided, a primarily Hispanic team running circles around a primarily Caucasian side. The game was quiet for the first twenty minutes, but then a player from the Hispanic team got too close to the keeper diving for the ball - no foul, but he did get a talking to. But after that, three quick goals, and then the whinging came out. I couldn't tell from my half, but it started with the keeper (who was on the opposite half from me) and just moved up the field.

Then the other team scored a pair of goals, and the whining magically stopped! Amazing!

Then, as the Hispanic team lobbed five more unanswered goals into the net, it started up again. The keeper at this point was being downright abusive, and as I tried to keep him under control, he let out that he knew it was a rule that, "linesmen aren't support to talk!" Who knew?

23 August '06 - 08:00 - - default| No comments yet - § ¶

Time limits

I remembered one of the teams from last season; they were a new team in the women's D-3 league, just out of the youth leagues, and were kicking peoples butts left-and-right. Apparently, they won promotion to the 2nd division, and were still in first place. This was a rescheduled game, as all of the regular season had been said to be over for the top two divisions - but here it was.

And it didn't look terribly exciting. They were playing the 5th place team, and that 5th place team were two people short. I've found that it's important, if the possibility of shortening the halves is a realistic option, that you don't wait for the captains to ask you, you bring it up to them. Since both halves need to be of the same length, you need to decide right away. If a team is dead after forty-five, you can't cut the second (and I've had teams ask). So I ask the captains, and make the decision final; the one team, who was short, originally asked for 30-minute halves, saying they weren't expecting any more players, and eventually 35 was agreed to... except two more players showed up after the game was underway, and the other team was asking for 45 again.

That's why I make it final before the game starts - because you never know, and acquiescing is just going to look like they, and I, am being mean.

22 August '06 - 18:04 - - default| No comments yet - § ¶

A rare surplus of refs

Now that the women's 1st and 2nd divisions are finished (although I have a center for a 2nd tomorrow - must be a reschedule), the assignor for the league must have had a rare surplus. On a 3rd division women's match, we had a 7 upgrading to a State in the middle, a State on a line, and me.

One team started short of players, and lost another to injury (she rolled her ankle); if they had a full squad they might have won, because they were the better of the teams (the other had four subs), but couldn't make it through 90 minutes.

21 August '06 - 08:24 - - default| No comments yet - § ¶

Playoffs, or relegation

I had the Irish team I've had from time-to-time, this was my first time centering them this year. They really weren't a problem this time around, mostly because they won. The other team, who lost, provided some issues, but for most of the game it wasn't a big deal - and a lot slower than I would have thought.

Both teams were in a spot where, if they won the next couple of games, they made the playoffs, but if they lost the next couple, would be relegated down a division. The game started peaceably enough (the team that lost started the game two players short, and gave up an early goal before the rest of their team arrived), but as latecomers started showing up, and the time started winding down, the intensity increased.

I had one guy who, just after he arrived in the second half, committed three really pointless fouls in under five minutes. I warned him at two, and after the third knew I was going to card him for PI. Players, I have a suggestion for you: if a guy has committed a bunch of fouls, and you want a card for Persistent Infringement, don't scream it for all to hear - there are many refs who would immediately hold the card upon hearing it, out of fear that the other team will now thing you only pulled out the card because of the outcry. That is what happened to me - I already knew after two that his next foul would be a card, and the whistle wasn't even out of my mouth when a cry of, "That's his third" came bellowing out in an Irish brogue.

I responded that I was well aware of it, and that I already knew a card was coming, and didn't need any help thankyouverymuch, but it didn't help. For the next thirty minutes, I was hounded on that on nearly every contact, foul or not. Once again, a quiet word with a referee would work far better than the outburst, or at least waiting to see what he'll do.

I also called a penalty kick off a corner kick. On a prior kick, I saw the goalkeeper bring his arms straight out; I could have called the foul, but it was borderline, and the ball never went near the player the keep ran into. The next corner, I specifically watched the keeper to see if I could get a better look, and not only did I get a better look, but he increased his output by thrusting both arms right into the back of an opponent about to head the ball; PK, no question in my mind. The keeper then has a fit during the placement of the ball - once again the adults had the worst field on the complex (at least this week it was painted), and there was no penalty mark (this is not terribly common anyway, but the area where the mark would have been was a mix of sand, uneven dirt, and scrub), and he didn't like my placement. I was amused, and let him know it, even as I ending up carding him for his continued charade. I don't have a problem with him saying he didn't like the placement, that it was over too far to one side - that's why a penalty kick is ceremonial - he can let me know; but of course it's the way he decided to go on about it. He was clearly trying to rattle me, and I did the best thing I could, I smiled at him, and responded that he was just amusing me to no end. Strangely enough, after the PK (which hit the post), I didn't hear a word from him (even after he was fouled on a high-ball sent into the area).

The guy I carded for PI was a different matter, though. I ended up going to him, and said. "Can you tone it down a bit? I know you're not happy, but I'm asking you, please. I do not want to send you off for something stupid, OK?" Apparently what sent him off was the other team throwing-in a ball before he was ready; I had no idea when he was referring to - maybe when he was checking in, but that's just a guess. But it shouldn't have sent him off like that - I tried to be very sincere in my words to him (and I was), and it seemed to do the trick.

I had one other card I should have issued, but decided against. I originally added three minutes of stoppage to the second half (the score was, and finished, 3-2), and the winning side started slowing down their restarts. So I started adding additional time here-and-there inside stoppage; and then after a booming ball that went over the crossbar, the keeper walked to the ball. One of the players who was down asked about adding time, and I told him they wouldn't lose a second, which was true. I even gave him the amount of time we were into stoppage, and what we were at by the time the ball was placed for the goal kick (another minute), and that I'd that much on. I could have tried to hurry up the keeper, and book him, but I rather liked the downtime, not for me, but for the game. In total I ended up with about five minutes and 30 seconds of stoppage - which seemed pretty fair to me.

19 August '06 - 22:01 - - default| No comments yet - § ¶

More lines, or lack thereof

Apparently cities really don't care now that the kids are done. I was scheduled to center a men's match as a suburban field, and once again there were no lines. Not even barely visible - no lines at all. Actually, there were a few recent splotches, which showed that someone had been around, but just didn't or couldn't re-paint. So, after some hunting by the home team, we found an alternate place to play - at a high school. The good news was that the field was lined, the bad news (which only registered to me after we started playing) was that the field, while legal, was really too small for adults.

But we soldiered on. I let them play for about 20 minutes, all the while trying to work on the players to understand what the confines they were playing on would mean for the game - it didn't work, so I had to change mine. I made a conscious decision to call it very tight - any ticky-tacky foul was going to have to be called, because players were getting repeatedly bumped, and unlike on a large field where players may not see each other for 5-10 minutes after something starts to annoy them, there just wasn't the room to maneuver, or escape the thing that annoyed them. I think the tactic worked - everyone seemed much happier, especially as I let the word spread that this was now going to be how I was calling things.

Actually, I'm pretty confident that it worked. Considering the team that lost and lost a player to a second yellow late in the game, still thought I did a good job (one of their players tried to recruit me to ref in his high school district!).

I ended up carding two players from one team for grabbing. One was a full one-armed hug designed to stop the player from going forward - at least the guy had the decency not to complain when the card went out. His teammate on the other hand... a fistful of shirt right in front of me, and he says he didn't... yeah. The other team also had two cards, both on the same player, and neither was terribly smart. I started watching the player early on, before a corner kick, he started shouting at another player and flailing his arms - I ended up getting between them and settling them down. And shortly after, he starts getting it going with another player, this time with a shove; at this point I don't care what happened before, he is the problem, because he is the one escalating everything - after calming down a heated teammate who wanted me to card an opponent that supposedly shoved the player I just booked (all I wanted to do was tell him to calm down, and I'd check with my AR, once he got that far, he calmed down, I checked with my AR, who said there was no shove). He didn't turn into a problem again until late in the game, with his team down 3-2, and he starts losing control again. Again, on the first incident, I intervene and just get the guys to play; but shortly after, well into stoppage time, he charges into another opposing player, who's eight yards away from the ball (which is the keeper's hands, too). It's just not a smart card to take, but it's pretty obvious to all it's coming, and the only person who complained about it was him.

I think on a larger field we might have had a different game; I think at the very least I would have been able to let them play more; but it was nice to see that both teams reacting positively to my calling it very tight; yes there were time when one team thought the other went down easily (which is the danger when you call it like that), but I think it was more frustration on their part - the other team played much more of a finesse game, and danced with the ball a whole lot more, which means, at least to me, that it takes a whole lot less to have a foul make an impact (and go beyond the "trivial" stage where you don't call anything or indicate advantage), than your standard English straight-forward with lotsa muscle game. But it made it fun, and it was why I was there.

19 August '06 - 07:40 - - default| - § ¶

Hey look, lines!

I was back at the same facility I was last week, for a couple of games for the unaffiliated league. I had some time, so figured I'd pick up a pair of games. The first game was a piece of cake, I didn't even blow the whistle for a foul in the first half (and maybe twice in the second). The second game was one I was given a heads-up about, that one team had some players who just came off a year's suspension. The game was good, but still pretty clean. One team was adamant about offside calls (and when I do a game as a single referee I rarely call them) - and I was, because there were some pretty obvious ones - I think I called about five. But when I work as a single referee, because I look at the play late, I give any benefit of the doubt to the attacker: if there's a way he could have been onside when the ball was kicked, I won't whistle it down - if there's not, I'll call it.

I'm pretty certain I had this discussion with the one team in the spring (the last time I worked for this league), and for the most part, they complain, but live with it; especially because I was calling the most obvious of them. The keeper and I had a discussion post-game about it, and he said that yeah, they do press for the offside calls, but they can because it's part of the game; I had to remind him that the game also calls for three referees, and they need to take that into account when there's only one.

Good points on both sides.

17 August '06 - 14:51 - - default| - § ¶

Last top-division women's game of the year

The top two divisions of the women's league ended today - they don't do playoffs, and they don't extend any further because most of the players are off to college. The game I had wasn't important for either team, so it was played pretty friendly. After ten minutes, it became pretty clear who was the dominant team (the one with a coach), and nothing changed following that.

14 August '06 - 15:40 - - default| - § ¶

Psychopathically hot (or, why lines are important)

The heat continues, and this time, I had adults, so the games are only shortened if they want it shortened; and being men's games, I was lucky to get watch breaks. Given that it was 106°, even at 6pm, I offered the team several choices:

* You can play full time, if you're so inclined.
* You can add water breaks.
* You can shorten the game.
* If just not worth it to play in the heat, I'd be more than happy to sign off on the game report that the field was improperly marked and we could not play on it.

Improperly marked isn't quite right - one step up from nonexistent is more like it. Quite literally, you could be standing two feet away from a line, and not see it; if you were directly above the line and looked down, you could see the remnants of paint, but that does not make proper markings. I could say that now that youth games are essentially over, the city just doesn't care about the condition of their fields, but that would be giving them too much credit, they never cared - if there was good news is that the condition of the grass at this time in the season was the best I'd seen in years.

They wanted to play anyway (and thankfully, even though they played 90 minutes with a running water break, neither team played long ball or ran that hard themselves, so I felt pretty good at half and after the game), but they learned why I wasn't happy with the lines when I called a weak, and I mean exceedingly weak penalty kick. It was a foul - but it was a touch foul on a guy's back that I just didn't want to repeat - it was, so I thought, outside of the penalty area, so I gave a quick chirp of the whistle (as opposed to a long blow, which would signify a more serious foul), and pointed direction. Then it was pointed out that it was inside of the penalty area; I had to walk from the spot of the foul, and circle outwards a few times to try to locate a line, and sure enough, it was two yards inside.

As it turned out, it really didn't matter much, the game went from 1-0 (after the PK), to 5-0, and then 5-1 by the end of the game. I talked to a guy I knew from indoor at a water break, and basically apologized - not for the foul, because it was a foul, but because I wouldn't have called it had I been able to correctly determine if it was inside the penalty area. He wasn't happy, but I think he understood, and probably more important for him, he decided that it really didn't matter, as he was already down by three more at that point.

Both teams poo-pooed my warning about lines being required, and my not liking the fact that they were barely visible. Maybe they know now.

The other game was actually far more interesting. The center was doing his first men's middle, and actually did a really good job. No, I tell a lie - an exceptionally good job. Positioning was great, eye contact almost as good as the few National referees I've worked with, his whistle was strong, he talked to the players, and wasn't afraid to card when necessary (he did get help from both his ARs to add a card to his list, but that's why we're a team). For a guy who was pretty nervous, he came out well, especially since the game got a little testy at the end.

The testiness flustered him a bit, in my opinion. I had to run from my position as the trail AR into the opposite penalty area to make sure that he issued a red card for a second caution (something I've never done before), but other than that, I think he did a fine job. Yes, you could argue that the mistake was a biggie, but it was covered, because I did my job by backing everything up as best I could (there was a card on the opposite end of the field that I couldn't identify, but I knew that something had happened and to check up on it when I had a chance). Hopefully the confidence will grow, and he'll continue on.

13 August '06 - 21:21 - - default| - § ¶

Brutally hot

Another two lines today in the state youth tournament, and the only saving grace was a strong wind. Neither game was terribly interesting, although in the first game one of the coaches was seemingly obsessed over throw-ins. We had a small talk after the first one (I was the senior AR) where I explained that we're taught that watching for foul throws isn't the best use of our attention - and he seemed to be OK with it, until the next one. At that point, I figured it wasn't worth saying anything more.

Hopefully the heat wave will end shortly.

10 August '06 - 09:57 - - default| - § ¶

Abusively hot

The last youth games are on for the season, and man is it hot - hotter than USA Cup hot. It was supposed to get into triple digits today, and I'm rather thankful that I insisted that I'd work no more than two games, even though they wanted me to do three. They also said that I had a U19 boys center in the third slot, but after doing the first two, I was dead dead dead. No way, after doing 180 minutes of soccer with no breaks, could I manage a third, and this one in the middle.

I chose wisely.

Neither game was terribly interesting from a line's point-of-view. Other than the second game was a lot of boom-ball, and I was, as I said, dead by the end of it.

09 August '06 - 12:42 - - default| - § ¶

2nd division boom ball

I had a call earlier in the day, asking if I could move from AR1 to center for a 2nd division men's game - I answered in the affirmative, and made sure to have more water on-hand for during and after the game. Unfortunately, even though it was a division higher than the last game I centered, it wasn't nearly as pretty - it was pretty much boom ball. One team would work their way in deep, and I wanted, and often did, follow them in as they tended to keep possession longer, then the keeper would come up with the ball, immediately punt it, and I'd find myself 70 yards out-of-position. I'd run to catch up, then the other team would lose possession, and the ball would be sent back to the other end. No midfield play at all, and it was all... game... long.

I also found out something else, I use the restraining arc on top of the penalty areas for quite a bit of my positioning; not necessarily being on or in it, but using it as a marker, almost unconsciously - and when the arc is set mis-marked and runs ten yards on top of the penalty area, I found myself hanging farther upfield than I normally would. It took me about 20 minutes to notice myself doing this, and about 10 before I broke myself of the unconscious habit.

The second half, after a really ugly goal was scored (lots of bodies flopping around the goal area, and finally a defender, already on the ground, unintentionally dragged the ball into his own net), things kept much the same want, until the final ten minutes. The team that was down was getting tired, and increasingly desperate to score a goal. Not able to out-run the other team, and not having much success with the (continued) long-ball, they found some of their opponents had short fuses, and so their tactics changed.

From my perspective, this was pretty easy to see - all the sudden their challenges came in later, harder, and limbs were flailing more. I took the time to warn several players who were being targeted that they were going to have to keep their head and not do something stupid while holding a 1-0 lead; meanwhile, the other team now wanted everything to be a card, and were trying to instigate arguments between the teams. They were really good - I didn't feel anything was blatant enough to nail them for something, but they were definitely trying to provoke reactions. One of the players that did bite, and ended up getting a card in the process, also became an advocate, exhorting his team to stay on focus for the last three minutes.

It was suggested that I call some more "control fouls" in the last ten minutes, and I tried to do a couple, but it didn't really seem to help much of the situation, other than cause more yapping between teams. I think I perhaps should have called more for both sides, and in a more rapid succession. But I think ultimately, I did OK, because everyone finished the game, and after the game, players from the winning side (the ones being provoked) were able to understand what was happening, and I was able to explain (in some nice understanding conversations!) what I was trying to do, and where I could and could-not have called; some of the things they tried were really good as looking like the normal course of play, although we all knew they did it on purpose. I think my admitting the later after the game helped the winning side understand that I really was trying to keep things in order, and tell them about it, but ultimately it comes down to themselves.

06 August '06 - 22:54 - - default| - § ¶

A gruelling double-header

We were asked to bring our A-Games, as the second match in our double-header was an assessment for the center (a Grade 5). I had the first game, and felt really good about it - I felt I ran well, came back from the game completely soaked in sweat (we ended up starting late because of lightning in the area, and when it passed, along with the rain, it became steamy). I carded a player early for a blatant hand-ball (he held his arm straight out at midfield to block a defender sending the ball up) - not the strongest yellow I've issued, but it seemed like a good time to stamp out any foolishness that might crop up. I'm unsure if the tactic worked, but aside from lots of whining for calls from both sides (there wouldn't have been much of a game if I called every little thing they wanted, but I wouldn't think they wanted every little thing on both sides called, would they?), the game went off well, and with a fair result.

The second game, where I was a line, was difficult - a primarily hispanic team versus a primarily caucasian side, and the winner would get a bye through the playoffs. The first 20 minutes were pretty mellow, but after a goal was scored, things heated up quite a bit. Play ratcheted up, as well as delay tactics - the second half saw seven minutes of added time, with nary a complaint by any side (including the assessor). Whereas the first game I was soaked trough my shirt, the second saw it go through a new shirt and all of my shorts. I'll be feeling it tomorrow, but I'd say it was worth it.

05 August '06 - 10:36 - - default| - § ¶

They like me! They really like me!

Last year I reffed them four times: I centered them once in the regular season, once in the quarter-finals, then lined them for both the semi-finals and the finals. So, late in the season, I lined them again, and for the most part, it was an uneventful line.

They play very skilled ball, and they play to win, which means a bit of complaining when calls don't go their way. But I found that the team not only remembered me, but seemed to respect me. On a corner kick on my corner, I had a quick conversation with a player - I initially signaled a goal-kick, but the center saw a deflection somewhere and changed it to a corner (I quickly changed my signal, and the player didn't see my original call):

"I can't believe [the other team] said there was a signal for a goal kick."

I replied, "Well, that's why there are three of us."

"I knew you'ld get it right."

"Actually no, the center saw the deflection. I thought it was a goal kick, but he saw the deflection."

I thought I'd try to build-up the center (who was fine, but if he was getting railed on, even if just a smidge), which doing a mental smile about the compliment. Although I have no delusions about my respect only being as good as how they percieve my next game.

04 August '06 - 09:14 - - default| - § ¶

99 Code Red

I had to inject a suggestion when I met with the captains: "Do you have any questions? How I call things, how long you want to play the game?" Temperature was in the 90s, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and one of the teams had only nine players. I really didn't want them to play 90 minutes.

"Can we play 45 minutes in the first half, and cut down the second?" We explain that we couldn't - that we had to have both halves the same length (the only exceptions are a game thats been terminated or abandoned). I had visions of co-ed games past, where one team agreed to bend the rules to make the game more exciting, only to later, when they found themselves losing or the victim of something they thought was unfair (even something as small as a simple foul), demanding the other team revert to crippled status. Fortunately, for everyone involved, they agreed to cut 20 minutes from the game and play 35 minute halves.

As the first half went on, the game got slower and slower and slower. I made sure at halftime to emphasize to the team that was short that if they started to feel the heat, to tell me immediately, not to wait for a ball out-of-play. I didn't want to say that the game wasn't competitive enough and they didn't have a chance at winning (it may have been 2-0 at half, but they had no offensive game whatsoever, and things didn't look to change, nor did they, in the second).

Having seen people drop from the heat, having seen people ignore the warning signs, and seeing that the game was pretty much a formality, watching for heat-stress became my biggest priority. Once the game was over, and the rest of my crew joined me, one said that it wasn't much of a game. I replied, "Everyone's standing, and given what it could have been, competitive or not, that's a good game for me." Had they played harder, we wouldn't have had the same 20 people on the pitch we started with.

03 August '06 - 09:22 - - default| - § ¶

Cold as ice

I was supposed to center an 18 girls game. Actually, I was supposed to center an 18 boys first division game, but it was swapped with the original center of the girls, because I was already scheduled to center that same boys team earlier in the week. But that didn't happen either because the game time was moved up and conflicted with work.

Oh, and I didn't center the 18 girls game, either. My youth game assignor works for over half-a-dozen clubs, and when it turned out that the visiting team had the delusional coach from a few weeks ago, I decided to make a discrete telephone call and see if the assigned junior assistant could center my game instead. The answer was an affirmative. The other AR, who was to center the next game, thought I should do it anyway, but I thought it best for three reasons:

• It was ugly. Or rather, the confrontation was ugly. I'd say he was ugly, but that's too personal - he was a freaking idiot.
  
• It was recent.
  
• I thought it was a better ethical decision on my part. I'm not hard up for games, I don't have a problem giving up my game as long as someone else is capable of centering (if he wasn't, that's a different matter). There's also the matter that, if a problem did occur with the coach, they're only going to look back at the last game, bringing up a whole lost of issues.

Then we did check-in, and that coach was cooold. After that, there was no counter-argument, we all agreed that it was a good thing to recuse myself from the middle. It seems I'm more professional than he is.

The center, as it turned out, was a first year referee, and was OK. He has some work to do on positioning (which can be taught, and he did improve in the second half after some suggestions, which he asked for) and foul recognition (which can only be learned by experience), but he was clearly earnest, worked hard, and went very deep on a very long and wide field.

Unfortunately, he was out-of-his-depth when it came to the 18-boys game. Being a top division game, he just couldn't handle the speed, the movement, and the teamwork necessary to pull it off (there were several times when the center pointed one way, and after he contradicted him). It's not his fault - we've all been there. I had a top division 16-boys game in my first year, then didn't have a top-level game for another two years. But it did create problems for the center referee - I think he dealt with the admirably, but he did have to work to get out of a hole not of his own making.

02 August '06 - 07:29 - - default| - § ¶

It's all about the giggle

Apparently I'm the man to center games where two teams from the same club face each other. I'm not sure if that's good, bad, or to be indifferent. I do know from experience that sometimes these can get nasty - like any other game, if there's a history between the teams, things can go south quickly; but if they're on the same club, it can get worse, because of the increased exposure to the players or team - and that can be either in person, or by others even talking about them.

Last time it was the U18 girls, this time it was the boys, and I think I did a pretty good job. It was hot and sticky (when the sun was hidden, it was quite pleasant, but when it was out, which was most of the game, it was pretty uncomfortable - especially in my first game which was a pretty uneventful line - in the second it cooled down a bit). I think there was a little bit of both - some hugs, some good natured ribbing, and some.... not. The not's got cards (from the team that won, and won handily, 5-1 - the one being an own-goal - apparently the team that lost, which I had earlier, was promoted this season to the second division, which would explain why their having an tough go at it on the field). Fortunately, there were only two cautions, one in the first half, one in the second. The first one came with a gentle admonishment, "You know, I can't tell if what you're saying is in good fun or not, but," and I steal a glance at his clubmate, but not teammate, to gage his reaction, "I think you're best bet is to just not go there." Followed by the caution.

The second caution came from my AR, who picked up a "Fuck you!" from a verbal confrontation. When I asked if she wanted to go yellow or red (I wanted to know how bad was it: was it a, oh you just said something, "Fuck you" complete with eye roll, or a I want to rip our your intestines and make balloon animals type of "fuck-you"? She hedged, and given it wasn't the latter, I said let's stick with yellow and see how they behave (latitude I'm not allowed to give in high school), and it worked.

One funny moment, that I just couldn't resist. After a hard, but clean, tackle near the fans, someone yelled out, "Are you blind, ref?" Play had stayed in that area, but wasn't being tightly contested, so I was able to speak back, without taking my eyes off the play.

"Yes."

The confusion starts, I don't think he expected this. "Did you just say you were blind?"

My tone is still rather flat, and the play's still in that quadrant, so I'm able to play along. "Yes."

Now he's really confused. "Uh... OK... I see."

"I don't." Play now leaves the quadrant, and I go off dutifully to keep with play.

It was one of those scenarios that you just couldn't resist, and only happened because of where the play was, how intense it was (it hit a lull at that moment, which was rather uncharacteristic for that game), and the amount of time it took. I don't know if it did any good (besides give the crew a giggle after the game), maybe the guy will think twice before doing it again, maybe he'll... nyaa, it was all about the giggle.

01 August '06 - 07:48 - - default| - § ¶