Soccer Nova Scotia Referee Development Committee Effective Communication by Match Officials Prepared by: James Keast, Chief Assessor 2006 Refresher Module.

Soccer Nova Scotia Referee Development Committee

Effective Communication by Match Officials

Prepared by: James Keast, Chief Assessor

2006 Refresher Module

Presented to the Halifax Dartmouth Referees’ Association Refresher module on May 4th, 2006


Communication

• Who do we need to communicate with?

• What do we communicate?

• When does this communication need to take place?

• How should we communicate?

• Communication and Game Management


Who do we communicate with?


Who do we communicate with?

• Assistant Referees and the 4th Official

• Coaches and other team staff

• Players

• Facility management

• Spectators?


Assistant Referees & 4th Official


Assistant Referees & 4th Official• Arrival at the game

• Pre-game instructions

• During the game:– At stoppages– During active play

• At half time

• After the game


Arrival at Game• Arrive in plenty of time to do all your duties and

to meet with the other officials• Its appropriate for there to be a social atmosphere

with your fellow officials, be friendly and take the time to talk to each other

• At some point the referee must make the transition to game time and this is best done with pre-game instructions


Pre-Game Instructions


Pre-Game Instructions

• Some level of pre-game instructions should be done for every game

• Cover the fundamental expectations around offside, ball out of play, substitutions, fouls, misconduct

• We know everyone knows this but repetition helps – and this sets the tone for the game….


… pre-game instructions• Cover any special substitution rules

• Cover any special competition rules (does there need to be a winner?)

• Discuss any expectations about the importance of the game, the key players etc.

– Be sure to ask the ARs if they have questions

– Remember to remind them to have fun


During Game Communication With ARs and 4th


During Game Communication With ARs and 4th

• Standard flag signals• Eye contact at every stoppage• Eye contact during active play

– Especially during tense moments

• Subtle signals from the AR to the Referee – Communicating things the Referee has not seen

• Verbal communication when necessary


Half Time Communication With ARs and 4th


Half Time Communication With ARs and 4th

• Take time at half time to check with your assistants about:– How the game is going– Anything you need them to do differently– Anything you might have missed– Any problems in the game so far


Full Time Communication With ARs and 4th


Full Time Communication With ARs and 4th

• Take time after the game to talk about:– How the game went– Any flash points – Be sure to ask if they have any suggestions

about how you can improve– As an Assistant be sure to provide good

constructive advice


Coaches and Team Staff



• Before the game

• During the game

• After the game



• Before the game– Introduce yourself and the assistants when you

pick up the game sheets– Polite, friendly, brief (same for both teams)– Politely remind them where the technical area

is– Remind them of any special rules



• During the game– Shouldn’t be necessary, but if there are

problems, politely warn the bench staff, remind them they can give tactical instructions to their players but must behave responsibly

– If you warn the bench, you must follow through if the behaviour continues or worsens



• After the game:– Return game sheets, game balls etc to the

teams. – If the situation allows there is nothing wrong

with answering polite legitimate questions about what you called – this is up to you

– Officials should depart as a team


Players


Players

• Before the game

• During the game

• After the game


Players

• Before the game– Be friendly during pre-game checks

– Introduce yourself and ARs to captain

• During the game– Talk to players to facilitate game management (more

later)

• After the game


Spectators


Spectators

• Generally avoid interacting with spectators.

• Any spectators who are impacting game control (interacting with players etc.) or causing you a major problem, have the home team remove them.

• This is especially the case in youth games.


Communication and Game Management



• Communication is critical to game control

• Use your voice to calm players down when they are getting excited:– “easy”, “keep the hands down”, “no..”

• Use your voice and arm signals for advantage



• If there is a major challenge but no foul sometimes it is appropriate to use your voice to indicate there was no foul:– “nothing there, fair challenge”– Tell them you saw a ball off the chest not

arm…– Don’t over-use this



• Sometimes the players really don’t know what the foul was use or voice or some small gesture to tell them:– “you need to go straight up”– Indicate hand-ball if it is not obvious – Don’t over-use this


Never…


Never

– Be emotional (appearing emotional is different)– shout at players or coaches– threaten players or coaches “next time….”– shake your finger at players or coaches or wave

them away dismissively– embarrass players or coaches

• When giving cards it is not necessary for them to come to you


Communicating without saying anything…


Communicating without saying anything…

– When walking, walk with purpose, upright and confident

– When running, run like a Referee not a player: head up and in control

– Give 100% effort – communicates that you care

– Smile when it’s appropriate• It is ok for you to have fun

– Use humour with the players and coaches, carefully

Soccer Nova Scotia Referee Development Committee Effective Communication by Match Officials Prepared by: James Keast, Chief Assessor 2006 Refresher Module.

Documents

game slide

game communication

game time

game pregame instructions

game management slide

game cover

official slide

necessary slide