![]() ![]() ![]() Perhaps it's the noise of the home crowd, or the fact that we know some players on one of the teams (I know this is true, because a fellow referee, who was also a player, once chastised me for not having shown him a yellow card during a game - "I deserved it," he said afterwards). We are not rule-dictating robots, we are also influenced - whether we know it or not - by varying forms of bias. It takes into account not just the emotions of the players, but the emotions of the referee. The author also looks at "the art rather than the science of refereeing", otherwise known as game management. This is when most young referees quit because they are not yet equipped to cope with the pressure that comes from agitated, over-motivated players, coaches and fans. Yet as several amateur referees testify, none of this advice is offered on training courses, or during the early years on the job - exactly when it's most needed. The reader is guide through mental preparation before, during and after a game, for example, and much of it will be self-evident if you've experienced several years out on the field. ![]() Much of his analysis and counsel may seem obvious, but that does not make this book any less worth your time. The book is packed with advice based on the author's research, both empirical and anecdotal. "Interestingly," he notes, "not only is each referee different, but the same referee may be different one game to the next." The nuances of human personality areamong several other factors carefully considered in this study of why soccer is losing so many referees, why verbal and physical abuse of game officials is on the rise, and what we can do about it. Not that there is an ideal type of person who is suited to being a referee. Ideally, the best referee will consist of a mixture of the two, combining self-reflection with self-confidence. The writer believes that ego-oriented referees (who harbor an "obsessive passion" for the game) are no better or worse than task-oriented referees (who foster a "harmonious passion" more associated with examining our own errors). In London-based Sports Coaching Science lecturer Stuart Carrington's excellent book Blowing the Whistle: The Psychology of Football Refereeing, we hear that arrogance is not necessarily a bad quality in a referee. It's the self-belief that keeps us going.Īrrogance, some might call it. Wayward players, loudmouthed coaches and gesticulating spectators all have one thing in common - they do not know as much as we do. We have a story for almost every game we ever officiated, and in most of those stories we come out on top (the stories where we don't remain untold). We love to discuss seven different ways to interpret the more obscure clauses of the Laws of the Game, to enthuse about our favorite jersey designs, and to compare notes on which brand of whistle we blow. Within their own social circle, referees are nerds. The Social Ref: How to Become a Better Referee and Umpire by Shawn D. There's been no action on the field since March, so here's a review that I wrote for at the end of last year of two refereeing books, by and Books of the Year, 2019, Part 2: How to be a Better Refereeīlowing the Whistle: The Psychology of Football Refereeing by Stuart Carrington (Dark River) ![]()
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