This Weekend Made Me Scratch My Head

[espola]

They should just jack up ref fees. That will solve a lot of problems...more refs, more incentive for better refs to rise up. Parents won't complain that much since parents know they are the reason why refs quit.

My first thought is that "more refs" will mean lower quality refs, on average, unless there is an untapped source of high-quality refs out there just waiting for the pay rates to go up.

 

[Surfref]

They should just jack up ref fees. That will solve a lot of problems...more refs, more incentive for better refs to rise up. Parents won't complain that much since parents know they are the reason why refs quit.

I am not sure where all of these refs are going to come from. It takes at least 100 games in the center for a referee to be proficient. Even if you do raise referee pay it will take a good while to recruit, train and retain those new refs. I know plenty of youth referees making $25-30 an hour that stopped refereeing because they didn’t like being yelled at by adults. Until the parents and some coaches stop yelling at the referees, especially the youth refs, there is going to be a shortage.

 

[Stryprod]

One of my games had a 11v11 teen game with one ref. Kid was probably about 18 trying to manage some physical teams - he didn’t do too well. I have heard many games not having any refs - I do not know what SCDSL is doing.

One of our kids hits a kid on the back of the legs trying to go for the ball. Other kid take exception and takes a hail maker at our kid. The other kid had to be restrained. The ref gives our kid a yellow and then gives other kid a yellow. Had to take a few minutes for my mouth to close before addressing the red. It was asked of the ref how he could expect kids not to defend themselves while attempting to be punched and then expect a bunch of other teens not to come in and help their friends from getting punched? How he also not made it only a yellow card offense to punch a kid - as the intent was to knock out kid out regardless of the punch landed or not. I also explained the other team now understands that anything, including a punch, is only a yellow. Which they took liberty in doing when the striker waited to about 3-one-thousand count to forearm shiver our keeper after he got the ball - no card. Called an offside on a 1v1 when he was trailing 10 yards on the play and clearly our player wasn’t - which we chalked up to bad officiating until what was told to us at the end of the game.

A parent told me the ref got in a car of one other teams players. I don’t know if that is true. Never had to ask for a game report to make sure a ref noted incidents. We asked the ref about 4 times to make sure to include the incident in the report - he said he did. Anyone know where to follow up? Just want to make sure incident was reported and to how it was reported.

Scdsl messing up this season with refs. Besides the safety issues going from being up in the game to dropping full points can mess up a team’s season.

Right or wrong call, got to imagine it's pretty scary as a lone teenage ref being approached by an adult(s) who were so angry they had to cool down first before physically approaching and questioning the call and telling what the right call was and that it needed documentation. Makes you wonder how every call was treated thereafter. For an hour's work at $40ish minus taxes, gas, and uniform costs being maybe $2o-25? NO THANKS

 

[Not_that_Serious]

Sounds like you are one of those whiney parents that didn’t get the call they felt they were entitled to.
Goodness, for all we know this kid didn’t even swing and you’re over here marking things up. Parents tend to do that. I had a parent on my team tell bloody murder every time her kid was touched. One day I pulled the kid out and told him to go babysit his parents.

Umm read the thread, has been pretty openly discussed and appreciate what some of the refs on here have said. Yeah because blowing things out of context gets me some type of internet soccer championship trophy. As I mentioned the kid had to be physically restrained. He was also left on the bench after the game and wasn’t in the line to shake hands after the game - a good call by the coach. Our team, along with there team, had Sunday League players. So no one was crying over fouls during the game - as previously mentioned. The kid lost his cool and took a haymaker. Really that simple. I’ve also mentioned the ref didn’t get any favors from SCDSL

 

[Not_that_Serious]

Right or wrong call, got to imagine it's pretty scary as a lone teenage ref being approached by an adult(s) who were so angry they had to cool down first before physically approaching and questioning the call and telling what the right call was and that it needed documentation. Makes you wonder how every call was treated thereafter. For an hour's work at $40ish minus taxes, gas, and uniform costs being maybe $2o-25? NO THANKS

I didn’t approach the kid angrily. No one else, including parents, approached him or yelled at him. I had a calm discussion with him and posed some questions to him, along as letting him know I didn’t agree with the decision. He was respectful. I do believe his age and inexperience showed. During the discussion. The league preaches safety first but the lack of refs puts the kids, and refs, in situations that are not optimal for maximizing everyone’s safety. Now in hindsight maybe he was more fearful of kicking out a player and pissing off a very vocal coach with more vocal parents. Oddly I’m usually, physically, the biggest person at a field and he didn’t seem uncomfortable when I spoke with him. Intimidating someone doesnt make a person more receptive to what I’m trying to convey.

Interesting enough SCDSL sent out an email about lack of refs and cutting them slack when they arrive late - even if it makes you need to leave your game earlier when you need to get to your next game. Better late than no refs, which is happening.

 

[Stryprod]

I didn’t approach the kid angrily. No one else, including parents, approached him or yelled at him. I had a calm discussion with him and posed some questions to him, along as letting him know I didn’t agree with the decision. He was respectful. I do believe his age and inexperience showed. During the discussion. The league preaches safety first but the lack of refs puts the kids, and refs, in situations that are not optimal for maximizing everyone’s safety. Now in hindsight maybe he was more fearful of kicking out a player and pissing off a very vocal coach with more vocal parents. Oddly I’m usually, physically, the biggest person at a field and he didn’t seem uncomfortable when I spoke with him. Intimidating someone doesnt make a person more receptive to what I’m trying to convey.

Interesting enough SCDSL sent out an email about lack of refs and cutting them slack when they arrive late - even if it makes you need to leave your game earlier when you need to get to your next game. Better late than no refs, which is happening.

Was not there and did not see it, but as described. a punch or attempt to punch is violent conduct and a sending-off offense.

 

[Surfref]

I didn’t approach the kid angrily. No one else, including parents, approached him or yelled at him. I had a calm discussion with him and posed some questions to him, along as letting him know I didn’t agree with the decision.......

This is completely unacceptable. If you are not a referee assessor or mentor, you have absolutely no authority to critique a youth referee even if it is calmly. An adult should NEVER approach, even calmly, a youth referee to discuss their performance during a game. If I had been there, even as a referee on an adjacent field, I would have intervened and sent a report to the league for youth referee verbal abuse. You do not have to raise your voice to intimidate or degrade a child. I am sure that youth referee was already stressed after working a 90 minute game, did not need or want to hear your comments, and just wanted to complete the paperwork and leave. What you should have done is either, nothing or thank him for coming to the game so the game got played and not canceled, forfeited or rescheduled. Maybe next time he will not show up and the game will not get played. Let the Coach and Manager do their jobs and address any referee concerns with the league and referee association.

 

[timbuck]

Kid gets fouled. Kid gets mad. Kid tries to punch the kid that fouled him. Referee gives both a yellow card. Probably should have given at least 1 of them a red card.

Here’s an idea- how about the coach and/or parent of the kid that committed a red-card offense remove the kid from the game? And maybe even suspend him for the next game?

Or were they happy with the “defend yourself” play? “Push him back!!!” “Don’t let him do that to you!!” “Karma!!!!” (When someone else gets hurt or a goal is scored).

Refs have a job to do. But coaches and parents can have a little integrity and follow the rules if a ref makes a mistake.

 

[espola]

I have my choice of parks and school fields nearby where I can watch youth soccer games. If the weather is good, I'm going o have to take in a couple of games to see if things have degraded as badly as the reports on the forum seem to indicate lately.

 

[outside!]

I have my choice of parks and school fields nearby where I can watch youth soccer games. If the weather is good, I'm going o have to take in a couple of games to see if things have degraded as badly as the reports on the forum seem to indicate lately.

I could be wrong, but it all seems the same as it ever was. There are some great refs, there are a large quality of good/average refs and there are some bad refs. Any of these refs can have good games, bad games or games where they make a mistake or two. The only time we ever escalated an issue with a ref crew to the assignor was last year when the ref was 10 yards from the play and gave a yellow card for a clear football style tackle from behind, rolling flip that sent our player to the hospital. We had video from two angles and those refs do not referee our games anymore. These refs were adults.

My son is a referee. He never seems to have problems with parents, but I have no doubt he would send them to the parking lot if he did. Any youth that plays soccer knows that all of the parents that would comment to a youth referee are idiots.

 

[Surfref]

I have my choice of parks and school fields nearby where I can watch youth soccer games. If the weather is good, I'm going o have to take in a couple of games to see if things have degraded as badly as the reports on the forum seem to indicate lately.

Not much has changed unless you are at a Presidio/SDDA game. They implemented the strong spectator punishment rules. It has been really nice working the Presidio/SDDA games since the spectators are not yelling at the refs. Even the coaches have been well behaved.

 

[Tommy Tar]

Keep on complaining and eventual there will be no refs. He was probably the only ref to show up and could have cancelled the game. I am sure the he lost the game for you too.

Huge shortage of referees. My old referee association told me when the economy is good they lose many referees. I stopped refereeing club games a few years ago. The parents and some coaches were just too much to take. I can go to my office on Saturday and make three times what I was making on the pitch. IMO if your over 25 your not refereeing for the money it's for the joy of the game. I now just do AYSO games. I can pick the games, fields, teams and coaches I like.