Yelling From Sideline Should Be Supportive

Our school and park soccer fields are beginning to get quiet now.

The busy season is winding down.

Soon, the little cleats will give way to snow boots until we dig them out of the closet again next spring.

Many of us have spent a lot of time on the sidelines this fall, cheering on our sons or daughters.

Certainly, most all of us appreciate the effort and enthusiasm shown by our young players.

We are also genuinely grateful to the coaches and others who make youth sports a positive experience for our kids.

But what about the person out there in the middle of the field? Why do so many of us seem to have so little understanding of and appreciation for the difficult job referees perform in making our youth sports programs safe and fun?

As a soccer dad and a soccer coach, I know that there is a real shortage of soccer referees.

On many Saturdays, game time comes and no referee appears at the field. When that happens, a parent or perhaps a teenage spectator (usually one of the players’ older siblings) is drafted to don a whistle and call the game.

For many youth players, becoming a referee is a good way to become further involved in a sport that they truly love and also an excellent chance for some of them to earn a little spending money. So they attend training, take the tests and begin working the games of younger children.

Unfortunately, many call it quits after just one or two games.

The reason?

There is too much yelling, screaming and intimidation from the sidelines. The parents and coaches are all over them. The young refereers just get disgruntled with the situation and quit.

Why do they get so much abuse?

Most often it is lack of knowledge of the game - on the part of the bystanders and coaches. Few of today’s parents grew up playing soccer. Few fully grasp the rules of the game.

To a parent who doesn’t really know the game, it appears that the young referee has blown a call or missed a critical play, when in reality it is all part of soccer.

There is a big difference between encouraging our kids to give the ball a good swift kick and screaming about an offside call or an apparent foul on the field of play.

In a lot of youth games, the score is not even kept. This is done to take the emphasis off winning. Yet these unpleasant situations still present themselves.

Watch the players themselves carefully. You’ll notice that most of them are just out to have fun. The outcome of the game is, in most cases, just an afterthought. In most cases, winning or losing is not nearly as important to most young soccer players as the post-game snack.

When you’re on the sidelines and you see a young referee stepping onto the field, put yourself in his or her cleats.

Next season, remember that these referees are there to help facilitate a healthful, fun and safe experience for your kids.