“What officials wish coaches
knew more about”
EPLCA Annual Clinic
presented by
Craig Burnett KLOA/PIAA official
March 1, 2014
Contributions by:
Dennis Runyon, Lee Stevens, Bill Twohig
Kevin Schaefer and Jeff Hewlings
The number one reason why an
official is on the field?
SAFETY
The safety of all the participants
*
*
*
*
*
The players
The coaches
The table personnel
The spectators
Their partners
What coaches can do to help
Provide a safe playing field
* Correct field markings
* Correct limit lines
* True surface and goals
Promote safety with your players
* Properly worn unaltered equipment
* Proper attitude toward opponents
The other reason officials are
on the field
“To enforce the rules, and shall
exercise authority in an impartial,
firm and controlled manner”
Page 112
Coaches and Officials
responsibilities are clearly
defined in the rule book
Coaches - page 21, sections 3 & 4
Officials - page 22, sections 5 & 6
The Obvious
Know the rules
* The rules change every year.
* Many of the officials you see must
know two rulebooks (NCAA/NFHS)
and the US Lacrosse Youth Guidebook
Set the proper tone with your players
* Teams take on the personality of their coach.
* Play hard, play fair, play safe.
* Accept the fact that officials are not perfect.
Understand the level of commitment
officials must make
Join associations ( pay dues )
* KLOA
* PIAA
* US Lacrosse
$55 per year
$40 per year ( + passing a test )
$50 per year ( optional )
Meeting requirements
* Six general meetings ( minimum )
* Rules interpretation ( mandatory )
The gear
* Multiple uniforms
* Flags, whistles, timers, tape measure, scorecards
The not so obvious
* Balancing our first job with officiating.
* Balancing our personal life with officiating.
* Contacting our partners prior to the game
to coordinate the uniform of the day and
any travel concerns.
* Conducting a pre and post game meeting.
* The importance of competent table
personnel.
* The importance of having a plan for
bad weather (lightning, etc.).
* Understanding official’s mechanics
(knowing which one of us to “communicate” to).
The Numbers
* Our association’s assigned 5,159 games
in Arbiter during 2013. (approximate)
* KLOA and GPLOA have approximately
225 members.
* Between the two associations we have
approximately 25 college officials.
* We lose a lot of them on Wednesdays and Saturdays
What that means
* We all work a lot.
* The assigners have a very large task
to fill games with the best officials
for each game.
* If a coach requests a time/date change
it presents a difficult challenge for
our assigners.
The really important stuff
Teach your players what to do if they
become injured on the field.
* Have them get on the ground and stay there.
Abide by the “Coaches Code of Ethics”.
* Page 111 of 2014 NFHS rulebook
Be respectful to officials!!!
* We love our sport too!
Common things coaches
complain about
* Consistency
* Holding
* Interference
* Delayed Substitution’s
Consistency
* You’re right and we are working on it!
* We now use game video at some of our
meetings and have open discussions on what
should or should not have been called.
* We hold an Annual pre-season clinic to
prepare for the season that includes
a one mile fitness run, on field
simulations and classroom sessions.
* We continue to look for ways to
improve.
Holding
page 61
“Holding is permitted under the following conditions:
a. An opponent with possession of the ball or within 5
yards of a loose ball may be held from the front or
side.
b. An opponent in possession of the ball may be played
with a hold check from the rear if the hold exerts no
more then equal pressure. For (a) and (b), a hold
check shall be done with either a closed hand,
shoulder or forearm; and both hands shall be on the
crosse.
c. A player may hold the crosse of an opponent with his
crosse when that opponent has possession of the
ball.
d. A player within 5 yards of a loose ball may hold the
crosse of his opponent with his own crosse”.
Interference
* Both offensive and defensive players
can be called for interference.
* If contact occurs off the ball (more then
5 yards away) interference occurred.
* Problem is, who initiated the contact?
It is often impossible to tell.
Sometimes players simply run into each other.
A no call is best if we can’t be sure.
Delayed Substitutions
* Players may substitute at any time other then
during face-offs.
* The substituting player may not gain an
advantage by delaying his entry on to the
field.
* It is not illegal to play, during live ball
situations, with too FEW players.
Things officials complain about
Assistant coaches
“…Only the head coach will communicate
with the officials…” “…Head coaches
also shall be in control of and
responsible for the actions of all nonplaying members of their squad”.
Page 21
I Love this slide
Thanks Bill Twohig
* Coaches screaming “blow the whistle”
when their player, with the ball in his
crosse, is standing in the box or out of
bounds.
* Teach your players to be “whistle
ready”.
* No more horns. We want quick restarts
as much as anybody.
Our game is changing
* The rules involving hits to the head and
neck have changed for the good.
* Now there is “defenseless player”
language in the rulebook.
* Minimum 2 minutes non-releasable.
Any questions?
* Feel free to contact me if I can be of
any help to you or your program.
* Let’s all have the best season of our
lives. You never know if it will be
your last.
THANK YOU for listening
KLOA website is keystonerefs.org
I can be reached at [email protected]