... here goes the heretic again
Originally posted by Baca Loco
The reason top quality players have made better referees is because they see and understand what's going on better and tend to react to them quicker. That doesn't mean they are doing, or have done a great job--only that they've done a noticeably better job than the norm.
And it clearly isn't good enough. And won't be until training refs is systematized on a different basis than it has ever been done before. It doesn't matter what rules you use if the refs aren't capable of consistently and uniformly enforcing them.
That's why my suggestions are a full, I hope, comprehensive package. A new start with emphasis on training, consistency and tougher rules on the repeat offenders. Here's the whole package, once again:
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Suggestions for Millennium, NPPL, PSP and X-Ball
1. Continue to recruit and train PRO refs to get them up to the level they need to be.
2. Require a pre-tournament briefing for all refs to make sure everyone is totally consistent on enforcement of the rules. At the briefing give them a pop-quiz to gauge how well everyone knows the rules and go over the important rules most get wrong. Minus points will be assessed for judging-player team members who fail to attend such meetings.
3. Carefully monitor the quality of judging at every tournament and encourage excellence and consistency. (Perhaps one or two video cameras could be set up to monitor quality and for possible later review, but not to change any decisions.)
4. Institute a 3-strikes-you're-out rule: if any player gets caught and penalized for the same violation (playing on, for example) 3 times during the same tournament, that player shall be pulled from the tournament and the team shall play with 1 player less.
5. If a player is pulled from 2 tournaments during a season then the player shall be automatically suspended from NPPL and Millennium for the remainder of the season or the next 2 tournaments, whichever is most.
6. Keep statistics of penalized infractions and violators.
7. Put in and enforce very clear rules about threatening, abusing (physically or otherwise) or attempting to intimidate refs. Make suspensions for said offenses mandatory with no exceptions. Zero tolerance!
8. Make sure that NPPL, PSP and X-Ball tournaments have a mix of international refs to avoid the appearance and possible reality of bias because these events are now truly international.
9. Assign to every field a head-judge who is independent of any player/ref team and who has the authority to maintain quality and consistency and to assess penalties for infractions committed by judges (such penalty assessments shall be reported to the ultimate judge who shall then, after verification, apply the penalties).
10. All professional and amateur teams shall be required to commit to judging one tournament in the series in order to be eligible for their points at season’s end.
11. The judging teams who are performing their duties for series points shall be subject to all the penalties related to infractions committed during the tournament in question, e.g. failure to wear goggles in the presence of un-bagged markers, etc. The required warnings and penalty assessments shall be spelled out in a list (I suggest 50 points for most infractions after one warning).
12. Judges who are professional or who are not performing their duties for series points shall be subject to the same applicable rules as the judges in point 10, except that any penalty point assessments shall result in a fine of €1.00 or $1.00, whichever is applicable, or the equivalent in local currency, for each penalty point assessed. For example a judge who fails to wear her/his goggles when and where required after one warning shall be assessed a penalty of €50 or $50 for each infraction. (These are tough fines but judges must set examples.)
13. Pay entry-level refs a minimum of €100/$100 per judging day plus supply them with lunch and drinks (even dinner if they are required to work past 6.00 PM). Pay senior-level or more experienced refs €125/$125 per day. Pay head field-judges a minimum of €200/$200 per day.
14. Require a minimum of one judge for every two players, plus three judges, including head-field judges, e.g.
for 5-player: 8 judges
for 7-player: 10 judges
for 10-player: 13 judges
15. Require that minimum safety requirements are enforced for any venue that has a league-sanctioned tournament. Any breeches of these requirements must be rectified before the start of the tournament at risk of losing any future sanctioning. The requirements should include, but not be limited to:
a minimum netting standard vis-à-vis quality, height, etc.
the presence of an ambulance and/or trained paramedics
all fields must be free of undue safety hazards
definite inspection of every high-pressure tank used
strict enforcement of barrel-bag and goggle-on rules
16. Change chronographing rules to require exit chronographing which will be expedited by allowing convenient chronographing on the way to the elimination box. Chronographing of non-eliminated players can be expedited by use of hand chronos supplied by the promoter or judging organization.
17. Get rid of the don't-look rule in NPPL. Players naturally have a strong desire to see the outcome of the game. They just have to shut up and not point. With more refs, enforcing the gag rule should not be a problem.
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But, of course, now I realize that all PRO refs would even be better if the league/promoters/those who pay entry fees can afford them.
Steve
