There is another topic about referees and rules that came up on a competition weekend, and is ripe for discussion as it is a pet peeve of mine. I was asked by a young coach, that also plays and has begun to referee, "why can they be on deck refereeing all weekend - and kicking players out for talking back or swearing and then hop in the water and do the same thing themselves as players?".
A great question from a 17 year old who wants to develop as a leader and follow the right role models. My answer to him was complicated. He is right, it is hypocritical for a guy to remove young players from a game in a tournament in a 14U division and then get in the water as a senior player and talk back to referees and question their calls. Why does this happen?
First, because it is allowed to and that is cultural. When I say I want referees to be specialists and not take part as athletes or coaches in the same gender as they ref, that is part of it. When the referees, coaches and players are the same people they are unable to effectively manage or govern themselves. Who will decide discipline if a referee gets into a game as a player and swears at a game referee? Will there ever be confidence in that system and people under the impression that athletes and sport integrity come first?
Another reason it happens is that the people who have these multiple roles do not fully engage with any single one and only take it part way. That means they are not mentored as referees to the point of being available for all games and events, being able to take courses and grow in the area as specialists. And, if many players are also referees they do not push the point of wanting to have, or to expect, specialist referees as that, one day, may exclude them from something.
The third reason is not as nice; it is the people who take on these roles and can't control themselves emotionally as players. They are the ones who are the most hypocritical as they do not admit or accept that they behave a way they oppose as officials.
I'll end the discussion with a firm statement of what is NOT the cause of this "multiple role" problem. That is, popularity of the sport or size of the community. The only reason there would be no specialist referees is if they were not valued and pursued. I spent some time the past decade encouraging parents with sport backgrounds to get involved as water polo referees to be associated with their child's sport. That was possible and we had some great dad's who worked many hours for water polo and made very good officials. The only reason for them to not stay involved would be if they were disrespected or abused. That is not the same as "we are too small" so it is an argument I don't like to hear with water polo.
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As someone who watches from the stands there is nothing more frustrating than seeing players removed from games for giving a ref a look or asking why a call was made when they didn't see what the call was for. Many times a player will come up from under water to just look at a ref and that's enough for the player to get an exclusion. Then to see that referee get in the pool and make calls from the water and actually yell at the referee when a call isn't to their liking is disgusting. These adults are yelling at ref's with less experience and lots to loose if they get on the wrong side of an older more experienced ref. I was much happier watching a game referred by a neutral party. Unfortunately the province did not feel the same way. Instead of standing behind those referees and the decisions they made a committee decided it was best to remove or undermine the top referee's in the province until they got them to leave the sport. Now I see players in a position of power when they are in the water because they will soon be on deck referring and able to kick out anyone who they feel did them wrong when they were playing. It makes me sick to watch it happen and until something is done to keep these people in line the sport will not grow the way it should. My guess is the president won't do anything since he is one of the worst culprits.
ReplyDeleteMany people, including msyelf, stop refereeing because it is such a difficult and thankless job. It is especially difficult in our sport, where much happens under the water, and referees are given a lot of discretion in interpreting the rule book. It isn't easy, and there will be differences of opinion.
ReplyDeleteAs a player or coach, desire to perform and win can lead to emotional response. I know as a coach, my own passion and intensity on the bench led me to be fairly vocal with the referees. It felt much better than being silent, as by yelling I was actively "doing something", and sticking up for our team.
I have since changed how I deal with referees as a coach. Part of that is because I've spent some time as a referee and seen it from that perspective. Sometimes dabbling in multiple roles gives new perspective.
I also have witnessed how a coach talking at the referees can rob focus from their players. Pretty soon the players are distracted by the referee's calls and the perceived injustice, intead of having a focus on performing and overcoming the challenge. Players also become more inclinced to talk back to referees when their coach does, which I've always discouraged, despite not having lead by example in the past.
I have found that staying calm keeps the team calm and focused. I tell them I will worry about the referees so that they do not need to put their focus on something they cannot control. For tactical or motivational reasons, that may still mean I confront referees on occassion. But not through a constant commentary or trying to bully them into the calls I want.
Unfortunately when the person in charge of referee development is the most abusive bully around, it leads to others retaliating with similar behaviour back at them. Refereeing, minor officiating, and even coaching and playing the game becomes a undesirable task. We lose people and we lose patience.
I'm not speaking about Manitoba, but perhaps some of this is applicable.
Is the referee issue really that bad? I would think the referee's would support each other. I can't imagine watching someone play a game and correcting calls from the water. Do those people just remove anyone from the sport that doesn't support them? I can't see that happening.
ReplyDeleteThe referee issue on the prairies is that bad, yes. Some referees support one another but not as a collegial group that has standards to uphold.
ReplyDeleteIt is very common here, where referees are often players, to see them argue back and forth with the referee on the deck calling a game they play in. The solution is simple, the team coach and the host organization can control this. The fact that they do not is what makes the sport struggle, always waiting for someone else to "fix it".
I am writing about tings that are happening, that people observe and comment on. This is not made up for a blog story.
So if the club/host and coaches were to agree on something then they would implement it and it would be "fixed". That would mean the PSO supported the clubs and did things to help the sport grow. If a player/referee/coach is the president what hat would they wear when. Who has the authority over that person? That is a lot of power to be given to one person in an organization. Shocking there is a question of respect as I suspect the hats get mixed up all the time.
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