Focus is an important aspect of refereeing, just like rules knowledge or mechanics. It is easy to get distracted, and all referees do now and again, but recognizing your weaknesses when it comes to lapses in concentration is the first step toward solving them.
Full credit for this article definitely has to go to Mr William R. Smith who is the rules and officials training chairman for the Southern California Municipal Athletic Federation, USA. He has officiated softball, baseball, basketball and American football for over 17 years. Mr Smith produced the article, from which today’s topic is based, on the Referee Magazine.
As explained in the final part of last week’s column, outside pressures or personal-life issues are a reality for all of us, referees, and can certainly affect anyone’s mindset during a game.
Experience has shown that the better referees, as noted, are able to put all outside issues aside for the period of time necessary to do their job.
Mr Smith in his article stated that US Southeastern Conference basketball referee Dave Dodge noted how difficult it is to get calls right when you are not 100 per cent focused. In fact Dodge believes that a loss of concentration often starts with a simple, small-scale lapse, but then can easily snowball from there. For instance, you might allow your mind to wander for a moment, causing you to be out of position for a certain call. Even if you get the call right, you know you were out of position. That knowledge causes you to think too much about your lapse, leading to a loss of concentration for a future call. The bottom line, he notes, is not to allow your concentration to be affected by anything that has occurred in the past. Talking from a personal viewpoint, in most international basketball clinics I attended, many experienced speakers made it clear as crystal that one needs to think of the next call and let the last one behind.
Referring again to Mr Smith’s article, Dr Joel Fish, sports psychologist and director of the Centre for Sports Psychology in Philadelphia, USA, cites many potential reasons for a loss of concentration in a referee. Often, it depends on the personality of the individual referee. A coach or some other participant constantly questioning a call might distract the assertive official. The perfectionist official might lose focus due to dwelling on a missed call. The social official might be too concerned with being liked by everyone and lose sight of the task at hand. Excessive taunting or yelling might rattle the sensitive official. The key, Fish notes, is to begin to understand what kind of personality type you are, and seek to know “what buttons get pushed in certain situations.”
The first step to establishing and maintaining concentration is a good pre-game self-preparation as well as team conference. Most referees understand that their concentration should be at a high level the moment they step onto the pitch or court.
Referees at high levels spend hours looking at film and conferring with partners about an imminent contest. However, that pre-game preparation is essential for officials at all levels and not just those at the top level. Even beginner referees will gain from such pre-game preparation.
Less understood among referees is the need for a post-game conference. Without a doubt, the concentration levels would not be an issue after a game, but the need for that evaluation after every game prepares the honest referee for the next assignment. Mr Smith wrote that while the pre-game conference is essential to establish the focus of officials, it is the post-game conference that is the key to improvement for a referee.
Mr Smith continues by stating that timeouts can be the worst time for officials when it comes to maintaining concentration. During timeouts officials use the opportunity to “go to their spot and zone out,” allowing themselves to lose focus. The problem is that focus is hard to reacquire, and that deliberate loss of concentration can lead to restart problems, such as remembering whose ball it is, who is the correct shooter, where a designated spot is, etc. When you start to lose track of those types of details, high profile missed calls and lapses occur.
On concluding, it is of utmost importance to highlight that every game a referee works must begin with the same referee entirely focused on the assignment at hand.
Whether you are working alone or with a partner, it is essential that you have a pre-game that sets the stage for everyone to be at their highest level of concentration when the game begins. During the game, you must establish eye contact and communicate verbally when you can to keep everyone in the game and discuss contingencies for unique game situations.
It has been found that, often, the official who is having trouble focusing will double his effort if he feels a sense of responsibility for his partner. Lastly, take the time to have a post-game conference or evaluation, to form a blueprint for improved concentration in the future, even if it is only a simple look within.
Focus is an aspect of officiating, just like rules knowledge or mechanics. It is easy to get distracted, and it is no secret that all officials do get distracted now and again, but recognizing your weaknesses when it comes to lapses in concentration is the first step toward solving them.
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