QUOTE:
So in a sense by the "good" officials not doing some teams, they are slowly changing some behavior of coaches, teams, etc.
RESPONSE: You are kidding, right?
Really guys, all this does is pass the buck and punish kids, who deserve better. It rationalizes a poor choice.
I say again ...
Nothing I have suggested here is unrealistic, unfair or onerous. A MODEST fitness check. A MODEST tweak in evaluation. A MODEST call for accountability. A MODEST call to step up.
Most professional people appreciate accountability precisely because it weeds out those colleagues who bring their profession into disrepute. Who are you protecting? Why so defensive?
I Do agree with the classroom/sideline analogy, to a point, though I prefer the classroom/training analogy. The sideline is the "final exam." One thing I'd say about the classroom: as a teacher/coach, I'm expected to give my best to ALL students/athletes, not just those I prefer working with. I don't get to blackball a kid or parent.
I'd point out that coaches do occasionally yell at officials for VALID reasons: 1) To protect their players' physical safety; 2) To make officials aware of potentially unsafe or unfair conditions; 3) Because poor officiating can compromise their coaching careers.
Many coaches (especially at the college level) are evaluated based on wins and losses. They are not "independent contractors" who can turn down scheduled matches because they don't like a long bus ride or a hostile crowd. Years ago, I coached in a league that included an opponent whose adult fans were openly hostile and borderline threatening to some of our players and staff. But we couldn't blackball THEM -- without risking forfeit -- even though it would have saved us a 150-mile round trip and some verbal abuse on game day. So we played, and when we faced that same team at our place, we went out of our way to be hospitable. We considered it a teaching/learning opportunity.
One or two of the whinier officials here would do well to do the same.
That said, I agree with a limited two-way blackball system. Coaches can blackball 1 official per season for "unspecified reasons." Officials can blackball 1 coach OR venue for "unspecified reasons." I can tell you as someone who has coached high school sports that many coaches WILL NOT blackball an official precisely because they're concerned about reprisals from that officials' colleagues.
The bottom line is respect.
I've attended approximately 180 high school, college, club, Academy and pro soccer games over the last four years. In most of those, I've had a dog in the fight. I can't remember the last time I "yelled" at an official. If the crew walked by me on its way out, I thanked them or simply said "good game."
Some here say, be part of the solution. I am trying. Are they? Are you?
