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Ok this isn’t meant to be a bash the refs type of thread. However I among others feel the refs need to improve at the same pace as the players and it just isn’t happening. So I’m curious as to ideas on how to help refs in NZ get better.
I know there is certain criteria in order to be a linesmen. You go through training and supervision and slowly work your way up the ranks. However once you become a ref, I’m unsure what is available to refs to continue to improve. In the south island, we have very few available refs to handle nzihl games. Those who are available are sometimes on the wrong end of public favor. There aren’t many codes where the refs are liked however I think there needs to exist a structure to push our refs to bigger and better.
So different things that I have heard that may be worth exploring is to set up a more structured system for refs like there is for coaching. Levels exist that must be attained through performance and experience (some must be contact hockey). Regular appraisals through direct supervision but also through video.
One big danger I see is that the process is only overseen internally. Meaning one or more of our senior refs takes charge of the supervision. Our best ref is still not at a world class level so i think outside help is needed. Not only should we be bringing in refs with higher pedigree, but we should perhaps send ours out as well. Australia is the obvious choice. The can’t imagine the AIHL would have many objections to having our refs participate in their games.
Allan Wishewan is the referee in chief for Ice Hockey Australia (atleast he used to be) and was also at one point the trainer for the oceania region. He has said numerous times that he is willing to come and run seminars and clinics. Unfortunately his offers have repeatedly been turned down by his counterparts in NZ. I think we need the help. Not just as a bandaid for problems that currently are perceived to exist but also to puch our refs to improvement.
What much of this adds up to is $$$. As a member of the hockey community, what is good refs worth to you? Would you support an increase in fees in order to fund overseas refs coming to NZ to work with ours and to evaluate game footage? Also to help subsidize refs travelling to the AIHL for more experience? Would adding an extra $10 per player in the registration fee seem reasonable? Adding an extra $1 to each ice time for each player?
With contact hockey leagues being limited in auckland and with it on the decline in canterbury, the situation isn’t going to resolve itself. Instead of moaning about the refs, what can we do to improve their performance? Players need to understand the rules better (and learn how to bodycheck cleanly) but the refs need to improve alongside the players. An unstructured ad hoc approach will fail I think since it has no clear goals.
What do you think? Constructive opinions please.
You are taking a top-down approach to referee improvement. Perhaps a better approach would be to take a grass roots approach and try to drive up the number of referees we have. This gives you a larger pool of referees to choose from, creates more competition amongst the referees and increases the likelihood of some of them going overseas for more experience.
Dunedin did this a few years ago and the proof is in the pudding. The standard of refereeing in Dunedin has skyrocketed to a level we only dreamed of a few years back.
training new refs to a minimum level is not the issue I’m getting at. Making our primary refs much better needs a top down approach. I’m talking about raising the ceiling of the skill level at the top level. Increasing numbers at the low end increases the potential talent pool but its not going to have the same effect as having more players and increasing the chance of a superstar emerging.
Am sure this thread will get nice and long.
I am very interested in this disscussion. As a budding on-ice official I am after as much structered Tuition as available. I am even williing to travel around to get it. As V points out if I am being tutored by an official at a certain level then i will over time grain that level of abbility but it makes it very hard to progress beyound that.While Reading the IIHF manual backwards and forwards can gain knowledge, it is the quick and decisive application of this that i feel will only come with actuall game time that will improve our refs. It has to be Games that are of a high enough standard/checking to push the Rules of our game and use the Officials to maximum capacity.
I would have thought the issue of a shortage of referees at all was more dire than a shortage of highly trained referees – at least in Dunedin it seems to be. We certainly have more referees down here than we had a few years ago (ie: we had none at all), but there always seems to be an issue of scratching together someone till fill in at the last minute.
I think what Vpatrol is getting at is the Referees at the top level have remained stagnant since the inception of the NZIHL, while the level of play has increased every year.
The question he is asking is what pathways can be put in place to improve this level. The pathways exist to generate more referees, there are courses to do and lower grades to referee in.
At the top level though, there doesn’t seem to be any continued education (I may be wrong on this, and if I am please correct me) If you are a referee, what things are done to lead to your development?And this is not a case of saying the Referees are shit, we hate them. Because that is no good, and to be fair I think the referees are getting slightly better, just not improving at the rate they should be. Also I would like to point out, given the measly sums of money and abuse they get, I appreciate them sticking around to ref.
I guess what this topic comes down to, is we have identified a deficiency how can we (players, admin and refs) move forward.
One suggestion I had, but would probably require the referee in chief pay scale to be bumped, is make it mandatory for all home teams to film games. And then the Ref in chief reviews each ref in the games and gives them a score.
This score doesn’t need to be public, but can be used to decide who gets to referee final and for the referees own development.
The score can have a report attached to it, saying you handle these types of things well, these not so much. And it is not about a witchhunt to find the worst referee in the country, it is about being able to constructively criticise and praise our referees so they get better.
They do it in Rugby and Netball in this country, referees know how they rank, and know what they need to work on. In NRL referees are stood down for a weekend if their performance is below par, and rewarded with the Grand final if they do well.I guess a major issue is time to review all games, three ideas I had
A/ is all games need to be recorded but the reviewer randomly selects a sample to review for each ref.+ Random so you get a good view
– may only get really good or really bad game from an officialB/ The head referee in each region reviews the games
+ Every game gets reviewed
– Some of the referees in chiefs in some regions are less qualified then the actual refs (a cavaet to that is watching on video almost anyone could review as you don’t have to view game in real time)C/ Peer review – Referees review each others performance
+ Not only is one referee being assessed, but the other referee is learning by watching someone elses take, could lead to greater consistency
-Referees job becomes a bit bigger (I am sure for better referees people would pay more for their services and a review session is added to their pay)I don’t know these are just some thoughts I had, I would be interested in others opinions. Even if they are just Azzy77 you are a pillock these ideas are the most ridiculous thing I ever heard…….
I would like to end by saying I appreciate the work all referees put in, (even if sometimes I yell things to the contrary, just heat of the moment I am sorry) Keep up the good work, and please don’t take this as a personal attack, just a suggestion for improvement
"Ryan":1xo266io wrote:I would have thought the issue of a shortage of referees at all was more dire than a shortage of highly trained referees – at least in Dunedin it seems to be. We certainly have more referees down here than we had a few years ago (ie: we had none at all), but there always seems to be an issue of scratching together someone till fill in at the last minute.[/quote:1xo266io]
I think increasing ref numbers doesn’t need a major shift in policy. #’s in Canty seem ok and Dunedin by your admission has increased #’s in the past few years. Certainly you want a steady stream of refs coming in but that’s not the issue I want to address. Grass roots development is an absolute must for players but it doesn’t mean screw the current Ice Blacks. Same for refs. Get the numbers up but increase the top end skill level too. Growth needs to happen across the board.
I think video analysis is a must. Not just to critique the refs involved, but also as a tool for refs in training so they can critique it.
Instead of just focussing on rule memory and application, I would also like to see a way of developing and monitoring what I call a refs on-ice personality (for lack of a better term).
How they control the game and interact with players and how they decide what calls are appropriate at what time is a skill that is difficult to master. NHL refs mess it up from time to time so our guys have some room to grow. How to improve this is hard to imagine. I would like to see expert refs from other areas come. Not just send a few refs to do a seminar and come back and teach what they’ve learned. But for many refs to hear it right from the experts themselves. I don’t think its an insult to say our refs aren’t the best in the world. Our level of competition wouldn’t allow it. So let’s bring some people in who are way above what we are used to and it should pay dividends. I personally am willing to pay extra to have better refs. I just want to know where the money is going for accountibility purposes etc.
What refs need mostly is nice black pants and the abilility to look like they know what they are doing ie; make bad calls but do it concisely with authority and make sure the bad calls are consistent. But nice pants are a must.
So far everyone has raised some good points re reffing. Good positive dialogue is important for all participants involved in hockey.
There is a huge amount of information out there for refs to study, its not just the rule book but the case book and OPM (official procedure manual).
You will get a copy of the OPM when aspiring refs complete the Level 1 course and test. This is an accredited IIHF official’s program and test. I think that there was a Level 1 course run in Dunedin last year and a Level 2 course in Auckland earlier this year.
Included in the OPM is an appraisal sheet for refs/linesmen. In Christchurch these are often completed by another ref for the Devils home games. Constant and frequent monitoring/mentoring of referees is very important to the growth of hockey in NZ.
The level of play has improved in the NZIHL but there are other areas, at a local level, that need addressing too.
Video analysis is a good idea but probably wouldn’t have to look at a whole game. You could pick several situations for training pruposes and show the refs. Video in conjunction with game assessments is the most effective method. Refs, just like players, have good games and bad.
A point that hasnt being made is who wants to be a good referee. WHen you look at the makeup of a good ref he need a number of atrtributes ie, good skating skills, the neccesity to learn and remember large amounts of information, ability to make istantaneous decisions and application of information learned, impartiality, lots of experience reffing, cool head, the ability to distance yourself from your supposed friends, thick skinned not to mention that people need to respect you as a person in everyday life. When you throw in the fact that its far more fun to play hockey than to be the target of abuse It all adds up to a dwindled supply of who wants to be a good ref anyway. They are in short supply right from the start
Two years ago DIHA devised an officials evaluation system. The form we devised is attached – it’s based on one I found overseas.
The idea is that active officials will be evaluated twice a season by a senior official in order to remain on the active roster.
If you fail an assessment you get a report of things to work on, you then get assessed a month later and if you fail again you get put on the inactive list and have to work your way back on.
Senior officials assess each other, but it’s more a peer assessment than mentor assessment.
We haven’t really been able to put the system into place due to lack of human resources.
Tied with it was a strategic officiating plan which dealt with bringing in senior officials from elsewhere and sending referees who want to develop to higher levels north or possibly overseas to do games under supervision, etc.
"Active":1p3ghrcb wrote:A point that hasnt being made is who wants to be a good referee. WHen you look at the makeup of a good ref he need a number of atrtributes ie, good skating skills, the neccesity to learn and remember large amounts of information, ability to make istantaneous decisions and application of information learned, impartiality, lots of experience reffing, cool head, the ability to distance yourself from your supposed friends, thick skinned not to mention that people need to respect you as a person in everyday life. When you throw in the fact that its far more fun to play hockey than to be the target of abuse It all adds up to a dwindled supply of who wants to be a good ref anyway. They are in short supply right from the start
[/quote:1p3ghrcb]I was trying to get at that when i mentioned reffing personality. Those inter personal skills that are needed. They can be developed but obviously when recruiting new refs, I think that potential should be included in the criteria. I think those who have the potential to be our better refs will show themselves as will those who can’t handle it. How to get those people in the first place, that’s another question entirely as you suggest.
on a side note, I think there needs to be an avenue for complaints as well. Just like major codes can file complaints to a referee body and have those issues addressed. A formal procedure adds legitimacy to the league. There are procedures in place to deal with players, the same needs to happen with the stripey guys. Not saying it has been needed this year but just in case it is….
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