An Introduction to Referee-ing
Whether you are interested in becoming a full Society referee or a "club" referee for junior rugby, contact us at the Society and we will arrange for you to attend the RFU's ELRA Course on basic refereeing skills and the laws of the game and make your introduction to rugby referee-ing as relaxed as possible.
The basic equipment you need to start is a whistle, a watch, a law book (which you have read and mostly understood), a pretty thick skin, a sense of humour and a love for the game of rugby. The smarter your shirt, shorts, socks and boots are, and with a "professional" appearance pre and post game (tie and blazer) you are ready to start your life as a referee.
The first place to try using your whistle and your new understanding of the game from having actually read the law book (which most of us never did while we were playing), is during a local club practice. Informal (even without full contact) and formal scrummages in practice will give you a chance to learn with much less pressure than a game situation. Learn how to watch the game as a referee; find ways to stay close to, but out of the way of, play - you soon learn to move from the No 8's attacking channel:; get used to blowing a whistle with variable pitch and communicating with the players.
Once you've spotted how different refereeing is from playing, it is time to build your education. Watch at least a couple of senior referees officiate, concentrating on the referee not the players. To where does the referee run in different phases of play? Where does he stand? Note that a good referee is rarely standing still! How does he talk to the players and how often? How does the referee communicate with whistle and signals? If you can watch a match while talking with another referee on the sidelines, even better.
Start attending the monthly meetings- we are very welcoming to new members.
Law knowledge comes from continuous reading and re-reading of the laws,from Society meetings, and from discussions with more experienced referees. Although discussions with players about the Laws are encouraged over a lemonade or two after the game, it is a rare player at the lower levels whose understanding of the laws will contribute positively to your progress. Likewise, interesting (and amusing) debates about interpretation of laws can occur with club coaches.
Fitness is a personal issue. If you have played the game, you have some understanding of the pace and intensity involved at various levels, although in general experience shows that at all levels (even the Vets!) players are fitter and faster than ever. Remember Rugby games last for eighty minutes and much of this time can be spent running, especially if you are doing a Colts game. A solid base of distance running, begun 6--8 weeks prior to the first match of your season, should be a minimum of preparation. Also, most referees find that some type of speed work ( 50 or 100 yard sprints, possibly a few 220 or longer) provide them with the necessary combination of endurance and the ability to get to the break down fast, when needed during a match. Remember the closer you are to the activity, the better the chances of making the correct judgment.
If you are going to be a club referee, very quickly you will be in demand for some Saturday and definitely Sunday morning junior games. Hopefully you will join the Society and be appointed to an appropriate match or perhaps be an official touch judge for an experienced referee for a few games. At all games you give a grading card to both skippers, which gives valuable feedback on your performance. Hopefully at least twice a season (often more frequently during your first season) you are officially advised by an experienced ex-referee, who offers you guidance and analysis of your strengths and weaknesses.
Remember, your efforts are truly needed and appreciated at whatever level you decide to officiate. Without you the games cannot take place.
Referee Equipment Check List - What You Need
Referee Jersey - in good repair, clean, and different to the teams playing. This means you will need at least two jerseys - one may be the official Society shirt, but one from your playing days (without a number) will get by at first. Some referees will have a car boot full of many different colours and styles - just in case!
Shorts - Choice of shorts colour is up to you (Society Logo'd shorts in navy and white are available).
Socks - should not clash with either side, but if possible match your shirt. Make sure you have 'tie-ups' to keep them up.
Boots - should be kept clean and polished. Always carry a spare pair of laces. Moulded soles are advisable when the grounds are harder.
Whistle - we recommend the Acme "Thunderer" or similar. The whistle should be on a lanyard wrapped around the hand / wrist (but never around the neck). Wash your whistle(s) in hot water after every game to keep the pea from getting stuck. Always carry a spare whistle on your person or with your kit, as you never know when one is going to get clogged up with mud.
Watch - an inexpensive digital watch, with a stop watch and/or countdown timer, is ideal. Some referees wear one on each wrist in case one stops. Record the actual time of day that each half starts, as a fall-back measure.
Coin - large heavy coin to lays flat on the grass / mud or be caught for the 'toss-up'.
Score Card and Pencils - the Society has pre-printed score cards. You also need a formatted serious injury and a dismissal sheet. Red and yellow cards complete the set. All contained in a rail ticket folded plastic wallet. Always have at least two sharpened pencils.
Law Book - the Society provides you with a new law book every year. Never rely on the old ones. Additional law books can be obtained from the Society or the IRB / RFU or seen online
Some other equipment, though not absolutely essential, is still quite useful:
Touch Judge Flags - Most club 1st XV's will supply the touch judge and his flag, but elsewhere referee supplied touch flags are easier to see than a waving cap or hand. They are not very expensive if you remember to get them back from the touch judges immediately after the end of the game and never lend them to your colleagues.
Drink - although the teams will usually provide you with a drink, never rely on the preparedness of rugby teams - take your own water bottles.
Sun screen - is useful in early and late season, especially on your face (and for some of us on top!). Especially important if out in the sun all day at a 7s tournament or Youth Festival!
Where am I going ? – Essex Handbook has clubs' addresses and phone number.
Plus the usual smart sports bag, towel / soap or shower gel, plastic bags for muddy kit, etc.
A Typical Game Day
When you start as a referee you will be exposed to a variety of matches and situations. Sometimes this may be the lower sides of big clubs where there will be other referees about to provide some support and advice, but often you will be the only referee present. It is important to understand that as a referee out on the pitch you are very much in control of, and responsible for, the match that is being played. While the Society and the Appointments committee work very hard to make sure that no referee is assigned to a match that he or she cannot handle, the only insurance you have of doing the best you can do is: Be Prepared!
Preparation means many things, but perhaps most important for any referee are:
· Knowledge of the laws
· Fitness
· Mental preparation before the game.
When the home team contacts you 48 hours before the appointed match, confirm the kick off time, the clubhouse / changing rooms and pitch locations (never make assumptions), which teams are playing, and their shirt colours. Get their contact numbers and give them your mobile number to contact you on Saturday if there are last minute changes.
On game day, double check your kit before leaving and try to arrive at the club a minimum of one hour before kick-off (yes, you might arrive before the teams, especially the Vets). Introduce yourself in the clubhouse, although often there is a referee "meet-and-greeter" there for this purpose. Find the home team skipper and locate both teams changing rooms, confirming they are the sides for your match!
During the time leading up to kick-off, get yourself loose and warmed up. Confirm which pitch is for your game and use your warm-up jog to examine the pitch. Is it correctly marked, especially the goal lines and 22-metre lines? Are the post pads secure? Are there any dangerous spots (holes, manholes, fences, etc.)? Ask the home team to correct any problems that they can, and make sure the visiting team captain is aware of any sub-standard conditions that cannot be corrected.
Mental preparation before the game is often overlooked by younger referees, but can make a dramatic difference in your match. Try and spend some time while you stretch and warm-up thinking about your positioning, about areas of your game that may have been not to your liking or raised at your last advisement, and about how you can help the players to keep the game moving. Just as the players are ``psyching'' themselves up for the match, so too should you be fine-tuning yourself for the match.
It is better to examine players equipment while the players are stretching out, rather than on the pitch just before kick-off. Check studs carefully and don't be shy about requesting replacement boot studs, especially amongst the forwards. Look for rings, watches, ear studs. Note if any players are wearing duplicate numbers. Use the time to explain what you are looking for from the players, ask for questions about specific areas of interpretation - always be positive, don't tell them what you will not allow. Perhaps a light-hearted comment with the hooker - "bit windy today but do try to get the ball down the middle of the line-out" or maybe the flanker - "I know your arms very short, but do keep it fully bound until the ball is out of the scrum".
This is also a good time to check the medical kit and talk to whatever medical / physio personnel are in attendance. You may allow designated medical personnel to come onto the pitch while play continues to attend to players injured who are away from the play - especially at junior levels tell the coaches / medical staff that you are happy for them to come straight on for injuries. You should allow play to continue unless you see it endangering the injured player or you perceive the injury to be serious enough to warrant immediate attention.
Try to have the captains' meeting 20-30 minutes before kick-off as the captains will want to give last minute talks to their teams. Emphasise that you expect the captains to help you manage the game. At the coin toss, the visiting team is usually allowed to call the toss. The winner of the toss may either choose an end of the pitch to defend or the right to kick off. (If the winner of the toss chooses end, the other team kicks off.). After the toss, ask both captains to send out their team's touch judge to meet with you. This identifies them to you and allows you to go over the touch rules with them. If the field is not properly marked, make sure your touch judges are aware of the twenty-two metre lines and the ten-metre lines on kick-offs.
Before you blow for the kick-off, it is prudent count the players on each side, especially in junior or lower side games. Most referees use some type of stop-watch to time the game, but you should also note the time of the actual commencement just in case. Note the number of injury time-outs on your scorecard, and length of major ones - you should be able to get close actual time in the event of stopwatch failure.
In general, you should be facing the defence at most times, preferably from behind or alongside a scrum, ruck or whatever as it occurs. In this position you must always try to anticipate the scrum-half's next move and to stay out of running or throwing paths. However when play is goal side of the twenty-two meter line you should be between the ball and the goal or in goal when the ball is close to the goal. Nothing is more difficult or embarrassing to a referee than to have a try scored and not be close enough to see whether or not it's a try - if you don't see it touched down, it's not a try.)
It is important for you, the referee, to establish control of the match early on. This does not mean blow for ten penalties in the first five minutes, but it does mean that you must establish your parameters for the game early. Of particular importance early on are clamping down on any ``flashpoints'' tightly. If one team or player feels that their opponent is ``getting away with'' something, the chances for problems are greatly increased. Awarding the penalty, or in the marginal case the few words spoken to the offender within hearing of the offended, will often cool the situation. Also, letting the marginal infraction go early on, in hopes of ``keeping the game flowing'' may serve to encourage the offender to keep pushing your limits, and often results in the offended team feeling the need to correct the situation themselves - the worst result. Talking to the players at stoppages, whether to get the proper spacing at a lineout, to warn them about an extra push you saw away from the play, to remind them to stay onside at the ruck, or to calm down some excessively robust front-row action, is usually productive. It keeps them aware that you are there and are watching, it lets them know what you are looking at, and it sets you up to award a penalty if the warned player doesn't act on it. If the warning produces the desired correction in behaviour without the penalty, so much the better. TALK - TELL - PENALISE !
Injury time is played at the end of each half. The halftime should be 3--5 minutes - use your judgement. On a blazing hot day the players need more, when it's cold or rainy they'll be lining up to restart in about 2 minutes. As you get to the end of the match be particularly alert. A tight game raises the chances of someone breaking the law to get the win. Also, remember that just because the ball is out-of-play (in touch), your job's not on hold. Get to the lineout early (first!) and keep the players in your vision and yourself in their vision to calm any potential flashpoints.
Each half ends at the first stoppage of play after 40 minutes have elapsed (unless the stoppage is due to a fair catch, free kick or penalty kick in which case continue until the next stoppage). If stoppage is due to a try, you must allow the kick to be taken. After the game you should proceed through the teams' handshake lines and in the clubhouse be accessible to both teams to answer questions on points of law or your calls. This does NOT require you to put up with uncivil behaviour or abusive from either team, coaches or spectators, and such behaviour should be reported through the formal Abuse Channels. Spend at least some time in the bar afterwards, but don't overstay your welcome; players often want to discuss the game (but consider it a good sign if they don't).
Remember that your goal should be to help the players have the best game of rugby they can produce on that particular day. Be consistent in your calls throughout, communicate to the players (especially if there appears to be confusion over your calls), ignore the sideline advice, and enjoy the game.
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