I was doing a boys JV game last night and while conducting the coin flip a more senior referee advised me to change my technique. He said not let the coin land on the ground where you have to pick it up. Instead catch the coin. That way you never have to take your eyes off the players. Is this really a thing? Also, I've noticed that many referees ask players to call it in the air. I've found it easier to ask for the call before the flip so there is no confusion. "Red, you are the visiting team. This side is heads, this side is tails. What is your call?" "Heads (or tails)" "The call is heads" Proceed to flip the coin. So... what are your mechanics for something as simple and mundane as the coin flip?
I asked an assessor about that once, and he said "I couldn't care less, just get the damn game going as quickly as possible." Not bending down is quicker.
I confirm the call before flipping, but I let it land on the ground. I don't pick it up until they walk away.
I'm in the camp. Don't let it hit the ground (we all saw the Green Bay packers game where it gets stuck) and catch it. But how you catch it is a different story. I've been practicing a new technique one of our national assessors suggested where you let it fall in your open hand. I do agree with your assessor that this isn't a time to lecture. Just get it done as soon as possible. So just handshakes, show them it's an actual coin with two sides heads/tails or blue/red and let the winner decide which side they want to attack and get moving on!
Yeah, that three seconds of picking it up is a huge time waster . . . I stopped flipping--I have the home team flip (and let hit the ground) and the visitors call. (I don't do adults and would probably not do that with adults.) And I use an Eisenhower dollar, so it's not going to land on edge.
1. Look at away team, ask captain what they are calling. 2. Flip coin, attempt to catch coin. 3. Regardless of my ability to catch a coin it lands face up somewhere. Mostly. 4. Ask winner of flip the appropriate question(s). It's a coin flip, not rocket science.
Id rather let the coin hit the ground and leave it there then attempt to catch it and miss. The second point has more merit, it is a good idea to have the call made before the flip.
Lol. When I first started working I did U10 rec I let them do Rock Paper Scissors. The kids loved it. Ymmv.
Had a ref tell me how he'll occasionally flip the coin and step on it before calling captains. After the player makes the call, he lifts his foot. I haven't tried it but I want to when I have a younger kids game.
Out of curiosity I just looked it up in the NFHS rulebook. In their infinite wisdom they included the text "The visiting team captain shall call the coin while it is in the air.
Which side they want to attack: a sign that you're dealing with a ref who actually knows the law. As a bonus, the players almost never expect it. I just let it hit the ground. For some reason I never toss it as straight on the actual coin flip as I do walking towards it...
I asked the visiting captain(s) their choice, and then I flip the coin. I flip it high and with as many rotations as humanly possible. I let it hit the ground. If it lands in high grass or in mud and on the edge, I flip it again this time attempting to catch it. But I tell them that ahead of time. I am yet to drop it, but have come close more than a few times, which is why I prefer to let it drop to the ground.
My standard coin flip, I do it a little weird: I shake hands, introduce myself, let them shake hands. I designate the dark jerseys the dark side of the (USSF Standard) coin. I designate the light jerseys the light side of the coin. Let it hit the ground, and I step on it if the coin sticks up in the mud. Winner chooses direction. I pick it up after they leave. I'll kneel down to pick up the coin for the double coin flip for KFTM. Don't care how it looks. No words exchanged, no lectures given, no choices other than direction. Works well with all ages.
Aw jeez, another difference between USSF matches and NFHS games. And getting it wrong is a misapplication of the Laws/Rules, so it's an appealable error (and now we have coaches wearing body cams). And as noted above, there are even more ways to get it wrong in an NFHS game: Be careful out there.
Omg this thread is still rolling? I use a coin. 50c piece usually, quarter in a pinch- amazing thing about any us coin is that there’s actually a head on the head side. I catch the coin by clapping one palm onto the other. That way if the visitors don’t call in time or there are two and they disagree, I can hold it covered until it’s clear what they want. When I uncover it, it’s quick to show it around to both sides so they can see for themselves. No stooping to see the result or to pick up. Tidy. Never dropped it yet, but I can see how it could happen, especially with a larger coin.
I have mentioned this before. In a college game, using a real coin, when I asked them to call heads or tails one captain said that I hadn't told them which side was heads yet. PH
Me: “No big speech from me today, you’re captains, so be leaders. Do you have any questions? This is heads this is tails, *to visiting captain* call it in the air. I’ll catch it, if I drop it we’ll do it again.”
I sometimes use an Australian coin. As I show them the sides, "Lizzy is the heads, the ship is the sails."
I use a military decision coin that has black on one side and white on the other I explain to the captains that their choices are either black or white “Your choices are black or white do you understand ? What are you calling?” “Heads“ I get this response a few games each season...