Quote:

Refs do get assessed. Many HS refs are club (USSF) refs. Coaches should not assess refs (at least not solely) becasue they are usually not trained to do so and look for different things then a trained assessor. Example: the winning coach of a club match complimented me (imagine that!) after a game. Said he appreciated me giving some signals (ie pointing at my hand or making a tripping motion) I was assessed and got good score but was severely dinged for doing that. Assessor said I should never justify a call and doing so in a high level match undermines the refs authority. HS previously had signals but they were eliminated this yr so you should only tell the coach "foul" when he asks what the call was.



Ok, so simple question...if the point of officiating a match is to promote proper play according to the rules, why would you NOT want both the coach and the players to clearly understand the reason for the call? Simply making a call with no explanation (unless, of course, it's a completely obvious foul) is punishment, not correction. Correction requires an understanding of what the mistake was so that it can be addressed and avoided in the future. Calls with no explanation when neither the player nor the coach understands the reason only produce frustration--how do you avoid getting punished again when you don't understand what you did to warrant it in the first place?

Clearly set expectations from the beginning and clearly explain transgressions, and you allow the players and coaches to share ownership of responsibility for good play, and usually they will show their appreciation. Try to protect some image of arcane power by using the "because I said so and that's all you need to know" approach, and not only do you not actually help to correct errors, but you set yourself up as the enemy and often end up losing the respect that the "you don't have to justify a call" idea seems to be trying to cultivate.

Long story short, I would say people like your assessor are part of the problem that seems to be driving a wedge between players/coaches and officials, when ideally we should all be on the same page and working together for a better, safer game. People who are confident in their authority don't have to worry about it being "undermined" by something as simple as an explanation...only the insecure who don't have much control in the first place would think that showing humanity shows weakness.

I've got good news and bad news...