Gridiron Australia Officiating Development Program - Posted 10 June 2008

Club coaches are at Level 2 and AGCA is working towards that. Offense, defense and special teams are each at Level 1. Position coaches, e.g., running back coaches are at trainee level.

Referees for Senior club games are at Level 2 skill requirement. Some other officials in the game may also be at level 2. In order of skill requirements, the most skilled jobs on the field for a 5 man crew are Referee and Linesman, followed by Line Judge and Back Judge, then Umpire finally. Which is why it is a good idea to start rookie officials at Umpire.

Therefore AGOA priority is to accredit level 2 officials which needs interstate cooperation. Level 1 officials can be accredited by each GOA who has a Level 2 official.

 

On-field Mechanics for Officiating -Posted 27 May 2008

Below are links to some guidelines to the skills required for officiating Gridiron football in Australia.  These are for members of the Australian Gridiron Officials Association.

                 Mechanics Manual

You can read each section separately. The current official CCA manuals are written for advanced officials, this one is written for beginners. Hence the detail. It covers topics in which we had systemic problems with beginner

 

Signals

 

An original as nothing like it exists.

 

 

Australian Sports Commission Online Training Programme - Posted 27 May, 2008

The Australian Sports Commission has online courses available for generic skills in officiating.  Here is the latest information received in May from Nicole Den Duyen.

 

 

General Orientation to Officiating

Here are some notes on officiating, to assist in general orientation to the more demanding aspects of our chosen field.

 

1. Accountability - a .bmp file for dowload

Links of interest:

(i) Here is a web log (blog), by FretDFire on accountability from a player's point of view.

This is particularly interesting, combined with the quote in the notes above, as it shows how players sometimes play best when they "see" what is going on in another dimension, being the future.  It says a lot about team work and seeing what you want to see, or what you need to see, in this case.

Discussion points:

a. What is preventative officiating?

b. How can preventative officiating be incorporated into what we do on-field?

c. When is preventative officiating inappropriate?  In whose eyes?

(ii) This is another blog with a slightly more controversial approach to player freedom and rules, especially "unwritten" rules.  It is written by Joseph Goodman of the "Miami Herald" on December 31, 2007 in "Gator Clause: Go inside the huddle of the Florida Gators". 

Discussion points:

a. What are unwritten rules?

b. Do officials have unwritten rules?

c. Some people are policy people, some go with gut feelings, some like to innovate?  Would unwritten rules suit these types?  Which ones and why or why not?

 

2. Working on the wing

Well, for some, it may be tempting to think of sideline officiating as working on a wing and a prayer.  Fear not, there are guidelines for the sidelines!

(i) Doing It - The 7 C's - a Word document for download

Way back in 1991, Jerry Grunska had a few tips for sideline officials which appeared in the August edition of "Referee".

Here are a few pointers from Jerry, an official for over thirty years-

a. Signal to the back judge in five-man mechanics for your key.

b. For six and seven-man mechanics, it will be side judges or field judges.

c. One way to tell that a runner will head to your side is if a slot blocks towards the ball and back. 

d. Other more important things for sideline officials who have got the spot - instead of rushing in to pinch in, look for facemasks and other fouls while marking your spot wide.

e. However, at the end of a down, this can be different, as it is important to pinch in smoothly, avoiding players on the ground without jumping over them.

 

3. Mental Toughness is a quality valued in officials, both by other officials as well as by the players caught up in the taunter-tauntee and coach-player relationships both on-field and off.

(i) How to Toughen Your Mind - Word document to download

Notes from an article by Dr Peter Sacco, a psychologist and freelance writer from Niagara Falls in Ontario which appeared in the magazine "Referee".  His article looks at ways to practice mental discipline in everyday life, as well as specifics for sports officials.

 

4. Personal Time Management Challenges

Many of our referees manage their time so well at official tournaments and regular games that they are able to participate in extra-ordinary ways.  Our sports particularly lends itself to taking initiatives and there is no shortage of givers when it comes to sharing the knowledge around.

One aspect of note is the use of technology to enhance our communications.  In particular, video taping games and communicating by e-mail, e-newletters and the website are popular.

Please provide examples of this for addition to our site.

Here is a test of a video that may be added to our online library of written, a.v. and any other resources-

Coach Chris Pella 1 - Coach Pella is a retired coach, onetime liason person with football onfield officals and volunteer helper at Brigham Young University.