Ref shortages this year

Discussion in 'Referee' started by Beau Dure, May 22, 2021.

  1. DefRef

    DefRef Member

    Jul 3, 2017
    Storrs CT
    I assign about 50 games a week and while I am losing the battle to get 3 refs on every game, I have gotten a center on every game.

    And the comment about newbie ref showing up for first game U17G comp blows my mind. Is that assignor trying to lose a new ref instantly?

    In past seasons, I would assign myself and my 2 sons to fill in openings and rarely had any. Now the boys are done with reffing and my knee is telling me that I am crazy to work for anything less than a $65 JV game.

    But last Sunday, I had a U15B Rec game (center makes $25) with 2 newbie ARs, both from other towns, that I had never seen. And no one wants to work the center, so I decided to do the center myself so I could mentor them.

    Game was easy enough that I did not really have to run (knee says yea!!). And I was able to mentor both ARs on the fly while game was under way. Kelcie - don't go past midfield. Patrick - where is 2nd to last defender? Both - where do you stand on a corner kick?

    Game was fun with a bunch of non athletic rec players running around and i think the final score was something like 8-6 (in a league that does not keep score or standings). I was joking with the players and constantly holding up game while shoes were tied. But apparently, the losing team was upset that on a goal kick, the striker encroached into the PA before the ball was kicked and scored. I forgot to mention that there is a white paint shortage and the lines were 90% invisible. I checked with Patrick and he said he was 100% sure the play was legal.

    So game is over and I am feeling pretty good that a good time was mostly had by all and it was a good use of my time. I am at my car getting my gear in order and a losing team dad walks by and says......."you are GD blind, you should have done us a favor and just stayed home".......and he just kept walking. I burst out laughing and had a bunch of possible responses and then just said to myself, its not worth engaging.

    sigh.....
     
  2. kruck

    kruck Member+

    Jan 12, 2008
    Houston, TX
    Club:
    SV Werder Bremen
    I've seen lots of 2 man crews this fall. Assignors sending out emails every week begging saying they will have to cancel games.

    Probably the worst I've heard it/seen it in the last 4 years or so I've been more actively reffing.

    Really poor quality in a lot of the officials I have seen out there. Kids who don't know what they are doing, kids who don't care or really make any effort... it's too bad but I have 0 sympathy for the parents, a lot of the players or the coaches... they've created this absolutely toxic environment anyone would have to to be insane to sign up to enter.

    I don't think anything will ever change the attitude of the parents/coaches/players are problematic. I wouldn't be sad at all to see them not be able to run leagues because they have no referees. What they deserve IMO. Too bad for the folks who are respectful, but they don't really stand up for the referees so, eh.
     
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  3. Pittsburgh Ref

    Pittsburgh Ref Member+

    Oct 7, 2014
    da 'Burgh
    That bear has teeth cut out of the USSF liability policy
     
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  4. MetroFever

    MetroFever Member+

    Jun 3, 2001
    Club:
    New York Red Bulls
    Nat'l Team:
    Croatia
    They didn't send you the memo because it doesn't exist.

    Anything not coming from US Soccer would not cover you from liability if you elected to accept such games.
     
  5. RefGil

    RefGil Member

    Dec 10, 2010
    Ah, the insurance boogeyman. Always entertaining the way it's used to frighten children.
     
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  6. Law5

    Law5 Member+

    Mar 24, 2005
    Beaverton OR
    This is not legal or insurance advice. When I was SRA, our state adult association president, who is an attorney and a former referee, looked into the USSF liability insurance policy. It was his opinion that referees would be covered if they were doing a dual, not that USSF approves of the dual system. I do know that the USSF policy covers any parent or other good citizen serving as a club line or refereeing a game because a USSF referee did not show up, got injured, etc.

    I still do not endorse doing duals in USSF games. I once did so in a game where I was supposed to be an AR, at the behest of a state one referee who was assigned to be the center. It didn't work out very well, perhaps in part because some of the players were experienced adult referees.
     
  7. IASocFan

    IASocFan Moderator
    Staff Member

    Aug 13, 2000
    IOWA
    Club:
    Sporting Kansas City
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Thanks for sharing! It makes me feel better about ruining (according to a coach and a mom) a u15 competive boys game which I did solo. I am in reasonable shape for a 77 year old, and had just finished a non-competive u15 girls solo. My assignor has usually done a great job of getting 3 appropriately skilled referees for all her matches. I definitely wish there were more of us.

    I realize I am safer from suit crazy people in the Midwest, but in my 77 years, I have never been sued or know anyone who has been sued for incidents in an athletic competition.
     
  8. Mirepo

    Mirepo Member

    Nov 3, 2016
    Why tempt Murphy's Law? US Soccer's bylaws are explicit about the expectations here and what is and isn't acceptable. I doubt any assignor or state association has the power to override that policy.

    If someone does get sued in a game where they used the dual system, do you think US Soccer, the state association, the assignor/league are going to come rushing to the referee's side with legal and financial assistance? Unlikely. Which is probably why the other poster is having a hard time getting a copy of that alleged memo.

    The dual system is terrible. The rest of the world has managed just fine for decades not using it.
     
  9. Sam_C

    Sam_C Member

    Manchester City
    Brazil
    Jun 19, 2018
    Went to a tournament over the long weekend where there was a severe shortage. It was a big enough issue that I worked two playoff games on the last day with only two referees. Never seen or heard of this before, but my partner was most comfortable treating it like a dual, but to avoid breaking any rules I was stuck on the line with nothing but a flag to wave around while keeping the added responsibility of that craptacular system. Suffice it to say, it was far from the most enjoyable playoff match I've worked :unsure:
     
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  10. soccerref69420

    soccerref69420 Member+

    President of the Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz fan cub
    Mar 14, 2020
    Nat'l Team:
    Korea DPR
    According to the assignors, our governing body has explicitly said "they will cover the insurance if any issues like that arise" because they know USS doesn't. But my question to you guys is, what exactly can a referee be sued for in a sporting event? I thought that a referee can't be sued for things like injuries that occur in a match, what else is there that you could possibly be held liable for in a lawsuit that wouldn't get laughed out of court?

    You acted like a dual center but with a flag instead of a whistle?
     
  11. socal lurker

    socal lurker Member+

    May 30, 2009
    Lawsuits against referees are rare. Successful lawsuits against referees are even more rare. But defending even a frivolous lawsuit can get expensive—that’s much of the value of insurance.

    What might referees get sued for? Injuries are most likely—ref should have co trolled game and injury wouldn’t have happened or ref shouldn’t have allowed the game to take place with the dangerous conditions of the field that caused the injury.
     
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  12. mvgary

    mvgary Member

    Jan 12, 2006
    Years ago our SRA had to go to court to explain why a league was using a solo ref when USSF only listed the diagonal system of control.
    I'm not sure what the lawsuit was about and the matter was sent to USSF legal department.
     
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  13. kruck

    kruck Member+

    Jan 12, 2008
    Houston, TX
    Club:
    SV Werder Bremen
    The Dual system topic is so tired on this forum.
     
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  14. Law5

    Law5 Member+

    Mar 24, 2005
    Beaverton OR
    We had a referee sued a long time ago. It was a high school game. A player was chasing a ball that had gone off the field. He ran into a spare goal that was just off the field. It wasn't even the post that he hit, but the sloping back bar. I believe it was a night game. I don't remember the injury details, but the parents sued everybody in sight, including the referee. He was dismissed from the suit, after he produced his note pad that showed he had asked the school administrator to move the goal farther from the field and the administrator had refused to do so. Also see NFHS rule 1.7.

    But, as socal lurker said, it isn't whether you are going to have to write a check to the plaintiff or not. It's how much your legal fees are going to run. Even a dismissal early in the proceedings will cost you at least $10,000. And no, we're not on the English system, so the plaintiff is not going to have to reimburse you for your legal fees if you are found not liable. A lot of plaintiff's bar attorneys will file suits, on contingency, hoping to pick up a quick settlement from someone's insurance company 'without admitting guilt.'
     
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  15. Rufusabc

    Rufusabc Member+

    May 27, 2004
    We had a referee seriously injured in a game last week. He was working solo in a middle school game, and was hospitalized for a few days. Our state registration for HS passes the NFHS insurance policy thru to the middle school level. He can use that insurance if needed. (I doubt he’ll need it.)
     
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  16. soccerref69420

    soccerref69420 Member+

    President of the Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz fan cub
    Mar 14, 2020
    Nat'l Team:
    Korea DPR
    Now this is actually interesting. A local club played league games on my local high school field where the school would frequently leave HS athletic equipment around the field. Hurdles, the metal football offensive line sled, the massive high jump landing pad. We had to spend time moving the hurdles to the outside of the track, but sometimes the landing pad and metal football sled were only maybe 5 yards off the field. Sometimes the landing pad would be literally 2 yards past the end line.

    I really did not like it, and would contact the school's athletic department to complain but nothing was ever done. I honestly considered abandoning matches before they began because of safety concerns, and that maybe that would get the school to act if the club tried to recoup lost field and referee fees from them due to negligence. But then I would be the referee who had two full teams ready to play who weren't complaining about it and still cancelled matches anyway when no other refs did, and knew that would come back to bite me. And I always hear about how when you're at a school or multiple fields with equipment that you need to use "spirit of the game" to play a game.

    Nothing safety-wise ever happened (sometimes players at full sprints to the end line would jump into the landing pad) but now I wonder...
     
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  17. GoDawgsGo

    GoDawgsGo Member+

    Nov 11, 2010
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    The discussion is about liability insurance in case you get sued, not medical insurance. USSF does not provide any medical insurance.

    Some state high school associations do, which seems to be what you're referring to.
     
  18. GoDawgsGo

    GoDawgsGo Member+

    Nov 11, 2010
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    And will likely also last 3-7 years while making your life a miserable hell. Hence the importance of insurance and hoping they just settle early and end it.
     
  19. Rufusabc

    Rufusabc Member+

    May 27, 2004
    yes, thanks, Dawg. Didn’t mean to conflate the issue.
     
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  20. Rufusabc

    Rufusabc Member+

    May 27, 2004
    In the last 60 days, I have had the pleasure of assigning over 2,600 games. We have had to cancel/reschedule less than 50/60 games in that time frame. However, it has been a long slog to get to that point. Cajoling, begging, using people I wouldn’t want on ANY game, but having to use them. Now, the county and state tournaments begin, and it becomes easier to assign. Only use the ones you can trust. And less games per day.

    it’s my first season as an assignor, and I never knew the assignor was used as the sounding board by all the entities. AD’s, coaches, fellow referees. It’s non stop. I never in all my years called the assignor. I just took the games.
     
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  21. soccerref69420

    soccerref69420 Member+

    President of the Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz fan cub
    Mar 14, 2020
    Nat'l Team:
    Korea DPR
    Tomorrow I have two games with a referee I haven't seen since pre-covid who I can't stand. He was banned from many local leagues in the 2017-2018 range for constant unprofessional behavior (swearing, confronting coaches/spectators, etc.). I remember doing a game with him years ago when a slight confrontation started happening in front of him as AR (I was the other AR) and he ran onto the field screaming WHAT THE F ARE YOU DOING GET THE F OUT OF HERE to the players

    Figured he was banned for good but he crawled back in here, probably due to the ref shortage. I'm prepared for hilarity.
     
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  22. DefRef

    DefRef Member

    Jul 3, 2017
    Storrs CT
    That is an astounding number of games. And assuming you get paid around $10 a game (could be more), quiet a chunk of change. And if you have a "real" job also, VERY impressive. I estimate I will assign about 500 games in that time frame and make about $5000. Nice pay, but not enough to quit my day job.

    But you are correct how much everyone wants to contact you. Wanting to know Cup rules, or if I can get refs for a game in 2 days. How to become a ref, or get re-certified. Whether we should close the fields for bad weather, the field has no lines, the ref you assigned sucks, etc...

    But the worst are the calls saying we are at the field, but there are no teams (or refs) here. Not a damn thing I can do at that point. And I am probably in the car heading to my own game. But that adds up to a lot of time dealing with non-assigning tasks. Like making sure the refs still get paid (which I do zealously to keep me in their good graces).
     
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  23. Law5

    Law5 Member+

    Mar 24, 2005
    Beaverton OR
    At least you aren't dealing with high schools having their own Covid protocols, with tougher requirements than the state requires AND tougher requirements than they impose on their own coaches and players! It's been a load of .........
     
  24. DefRef

    DefRef Member

    Jul 3, 2017
    Storrs CT
    No, we have not had anything like that. I would think that if they had a couple of no refs available, they might change their tune.

    I am really lucky to be living in CT. We have the highest vaccination rate in the USA and currently a really low infection rate (<2%).

    I know this can be cyclical, but this season has been totally, absolutely NORMAL!!!

    Except for the bus driver shortage.............o_O:confused:
     
  25. RefGil

    RefGil Member

    Dec 10, 2010
    The bus driver shortage has been the difference between a bad season, with lots of varsity duels (and a few varsity solos) and a horrible season, with cancellations due to no refs. When the middle schools call and cancel in the afternoon, I at least get to move the one ref I had on that game to an unfilled spot on a varsity game.

    We're down to the last couple of days now. Next week is round-of-16 and quarterfinals, and those are assigned by the state. When I do invoicing, I'll sort out how many spots we didn't fill.
     
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