If a referee is to be really honest, then he definitely cannot disagree with the fact that there will arise regular occasions where he, as a game official during some tough encounter, will have to face a coach (or coaches) who seem never to be satisfied, whatever the level of play.

Certainly, at times, referees (especially those who really take their task seriously and who devote a lot of energy and sacrifice time in order to prepare themselves well in all aspects, be it technically, physically and psychologically) get frustrated by coaches for good reason.

To be totally frank, this trend is not always unidirectional as there will be instances when coaches become frustrated with the way certain referees go about with their job.

My sincere opinion is that a professional-minded individual, be he a referee or a coach will ultimately (especially after the post-game emotions have calmed down) will easily reason whether his initial source of frustration should be respected or not.

However, since my column deals and is directed mainly at referees I have to take the referee stance and discuss the matter accordingly.

At junior levels of play, one expects coaches to maybe be not very much acquainted and adequately aware of the latest rules and techniques. Thus ‘real’ referees will sometimes make an allowance for this and may have different reactions than if eh same thing happened at the senior level of play.

This is due to the fact that at the top level, a referee will generally expect that coaches are highly dedicated people who study and totally feel the game and are also up-to-date with the latest technical trends.

If this in fact occurs or not is another issue which we referees cannot inquire into as our job demands primarily that we are in the best possible shape and frame of mind so as to give a fair and unbiased service added with a professional attitude right from the first second of the game up to the final horn or whistle.

I do not want to beat round the bushes but it is also true that there are a few coaches who should not be coaches and do quite some harm to their sector and thus should be rejected when applying for a renewal of licence.

However, there are then good coaches who really put in a lot of effort in their job. Some of my local colleagues tend not to believe me when I state that a referee can also learn from a coach. Yet I stick with what I say and would like to see more interaction between coaches (the real ones) and referees (ok, some of the coaches who read this column may be fuming right now as they believe some referees should be removed. I cannot deny, as I have many times stated before in this column, that as in everything in life there are always black sheep roaming around. Some referees do not put much effort, which is the truth. Many state that we need a certain quantity in our sector but I believe that it is better to have a limited quality of referees than just a quantity).

One can never learn all there is to know. This holds both for a referee and a coach. In the refereeing world it has been many time stated that “the perfect game has not been worked yet, but that is no reason to stop trying.”

Studies also show that superior referees know that there is always more to be learned. The key ingredient in becoming better is to admit your fallibility and seek ways to expand your knowledge.

Personally I believe that there is nothing wrong in discussing the game in general and even game plays with the coaches. I such meetings both can understand each other’s mentality and way of doing things.

For example in understanding how coaches see and feel the game could make our game administration, as referees, easier. The same may work vice-versa, whereby coaches can end up leading their team in a more efficient way if they understand and respect how the referee goes about in his job.

It is clear that both of us, referees and coaches have our roles to see to. Both roles carry responsibility and pressure and both have to take place on the same court at the same time. Thus we (always assuming that referees and coaches are dedicated and aim for the best in all aspects) need, as much as possible, to create the right reciprocal respectful environment. Any lack of respect will then have to be handled by the rules.

Speaking in a local context, sometimes it is quite difficult to finalize a referee/coach meeting. First of all somebody has to make the first step and subsequently the offer has to be accepted from the other part. There can be different characters, attitudes and/or mentalities but I conclude by stating that only good can result from such meetings because, as I stated already above, one can never learn all there is to know, be he an international referee or a coach with many years of experience as both may be experts in their field but can still fine-tune their performance by understanding each other better.

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