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| Hello, Referees! |
| This the Referee Week at The Creek. I will be sharing information critical for Referees here instead of e-mails. These should be here forever, though I'm wondering where the past three years of information has gone. Lucky I have backups. |
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| Pop Quiz: |
| An oldie but goodie: Goalkeeper in 12U punts the ball, straight up in the air, the wind blows it back, and she then catches it in the Penalty Area. What is the restart? (Answer below.) |
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| First: Safety. |
| Your Player Inspection must include, and I perform my inspections bottom to top, but whatever works for you: |
| 1. | Safe Shoes. (no toe cleats, no too-sharp cleats; sneakers are acceptable.) |
| 2. | Shin guards on. |
| 3. | Shirt tucked in? Eh, not required. Shorts' strings tucked in. |
| 4. | Bracelets off, EXCLUDING medical alert bracelets, which must be covered or taped. EMTs need to know of pre-existing conditions (allergies, sugar level issues, etc.) before providing medical attention. |
| 5. | Necklaces off. |
| 6. | Earrings off, INCLUDING any "permanent" jewelry. |
| 7. | Any other hard jewelry in, on, or around the face, off. |
| 8. | Hair adornments (AYSO): nothing hard nor protruding outward; beads cannot be worn such that they can whip around and harm other players; Tight to the head is acceptable; Your decision (or call a Board member). |
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| Make sure the Field Monitor, someone on the Home side with a walkie-talkie and an orange vest, signs the home team's card. They do not need to patrol the fields. You need to know where they are. |
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| NO DOGS ALLOWED! If you see a dog on the fields, please have the Field Monitor call a Board Member. Do note that the visiting teams for U14 might be from other Regions who have different policies or level of enforcement. It is not your job to get the dog removed, but you may (and I encourage it) stop play, or not start the match, until the field is safe for play. |
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| For any injury incidents in which a player cannot return to the field for the remainder of the match, please make a note on the back of the game card! "#4 injured 2ndQ, no return" or something like it. |
| In future weeks, the Safety Director might come to your Field to cross a player off for not being allowed to play due a continuing injury. |
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| Second: Ref Tent procedure |
| Please come to the Ref Tent 30 minutes (or more) before your self-assigned match. You can get signed in to all of your matches at once, especially if they are back-to-back. |
| The sign-in sheets will be a little different this year, due to the new Self-Scheduling System. |
| The Ref Staff will mark you as present for your match. Tell the staff member your fields and times. |
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| Third: Game Cards |
| For you new referees: please fill out the Game Cards according to this web page. |
| https://www.ayso9.org/Default.aspx?tabid=949922 |
| For you more experienced referees: please fill out the Game Cards according to this web page. |
| https://www.ayso9.org/Default.aspx?tabid=949922 |
| Coaches should have the cards' rosters already filled out for whole season, since the roster won't change (if someone drops, they can be crossed out; if someone is added later, there is room). |
| Some Game Cards say "quarters played" at the top. IGNORE THAT! Mark which players are NOT playing (there are fewer of them) with an "X", and who is playing Goalkeeper with a "G" ("K" looks too much like an "X"). |
| Mark the goals in the Goals scored columns, not the substitution columns. |
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| Fourth: Which side is the Home Side? |
| The HOME Team shall reside on the North (closest to Janss Rd) or West (closest to The 23 Freeway) Side of the fields. |
| NO, the first people to arrive don't get to choose. |
| NO, the home team doesn't get to choose. |
| This also applies to 14U Area Matches, where the away team might not know where to go. As hosts, let us provide the information they need. |
| The EMTs will arrive at the home (West or North) side when called to the home side. |
| Please arrive 15 minutes to your field. If teams are not on their appropriate side, please move them. For the safety of the players who are injured. |
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| Fifth: Coach and Spectator Behavior |
| Soccer can be a passionate game. Parents can be very passionate about their children's safety. Neither of these mean that you have to take any guff (aka "abuse") from anyone about your calls, or lack of calls, or your mistakes, which you are likely to make as a human. If you encounter any abuse that you are not comfortable with -- and that is the ONLY criteria -- stop the match, explain to the coach that it has to end, be it from them or a spectator. Do not engage with spectators who are abusive. If it continues, stop the match, tell the coach that the match will not restart until the field is safe from the abuser, be it the coach or a spectator. If this still fails to resolve the situation, go to the Field Monitor and ask for a Board Member (not "Ref Tent"!) to help resolve, and do not restart the match until that Board Member arrives.
Note: You may use your Yellow and Red Cards on Coaches, but not on Spectators, and you may not use your Yellow and Red Cards on Coaches because of Spectators' behavior. If they feel uncomfortable with confrontation, call a Board Member on the Walkie-Talkie. |
| My philosophy is simple: I do not want to lose you as a Referee. You don't need to "suck it up and take it." That is not in the job description. You are a volunteer, and when volunteers don't think their volunteering is not worth doing, they stop volunteering. |
| And, I do not want to lose wonderful families who want a safe, non-abusive place for their kids to play. When we allow abuse to continue, we lose these families who are offended at the behavior that we allow. |
| I am OK with losing abusive people and their families who want to continue abusing. |
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| Pop Answer: |
| The offense is: The goalkeeper illegally handled the ball after releasing it and before another player touched it, and inside the Penalty Area. Restart is an Indirect Kick for the opposing team at the spot where the goalkeeper illegally handled the ball; unless this spot is inside the Goal Area, in which case the ball is spotted on the Goal Area's boundary parallel to the Goal Line and closest to the spot of the offense. |
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| Thank you again, and I will see you out there on Saturday! |