The Ref's Report
AUGUST, 1997
OFFICERS
Larry Mittleman
President
Roy Eggert
Vice President
Pat Werner
Secretary
Alan Cecilio
Treasurer
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Don Dennison
Jim Gordon
Miles Kahn
Avner Koldaro
Mark Mason
ASSIGNORS
Gerry Grimes
(301) 559-7400 or
1-800-391-4703 code 69
Larry Mittleman
(301) 260-0029
Zsolt Szalay
(301) 605-0220
President's Column
WHERE WE GO FROM HERE
On June 23, MWRSA's members voted to amend the proposed constitution and bylaws to retain MWSRA's name. As of this moment, CASRA is not willing to proceed with a merger under the MWSRA name. Discussions will continue between the leaders of our two associations, and we hope that we'll be able to resolve the remaining differences in the near future. Until such time, your Executive Board will continue working to make MWSRA better and stronger.
I would like to thank all of the members of the Executive Board who served this past year. Without their dedication, time and effort, MWSRA would not be as effective as it is. Thanks to Vice-President Tadd Dawson, Treasurer Alan Cecilio, Secretary Pat Werner and board members Don Dennison, Roy Eggert, Jim Gordon, Miles Kahn, Avner Koldaro and Zsolt Szalay. We all are grateful for your confidence in us.
Larry Mittleman
President
MWSRA ASSIGNORS FOR THE FALL SEASON
Gerry Grimes
(301) 559-7400 or 1-800-391-4703 code 69
school games, weekday adult games
Larry Mittleman
(301) 260-0029
weekend youth games
Zsolt Szalay
(301) 605-0220
weekend adult games
MWSRA SCHEDULES HIGH SCHOOL AND FIFA LAWS CLINICS AUGUST 19
HIGH SCHOOL RULES CLINIC
MWSRA will hold its annual high school federation rules clinic at 7:00 on Tuesday, August 19, in the auditorium at Blair HS in Silver Spring. As always, this clinic is a mandatory requirement for taking the HS federation test and qualifying to work public high school games. If you cannot attend MWSRA's clinic, you can fulfill the requirement by attending one of the other rules clinics listed below. The cost of the clinic and rulebook is $20, payable in cash or by check to MWSRA. The HS federation rules exam is to be held at 7:00 on Monday, September 8 at Blair HS, subject to final confirmation at the rules clinic.
If you can't attend MWSRA's HS rules clinic, the Maryland Public Secondary Schools Athletic Association works with other referee organizations to hold clinics. You can attend any clinic to satisfy the requirement, but bring proof of attendance to the test if you attend another association's clinic. All clinics are instructed by Steve Malone, MPSSAA Soccer Rules Interpreter, and all begin at 7 pm. Please call the MPSSAA office at (410) 767-0376 to find out if there have been changes in the date, time or location of clinics.
Monday Aug. 11 WMSOA/Appalachian Thomas Johnson HS
Tuesday Aug. 12 Bayside J.M. Bennett HS
Wednesday Aug. 13 HARSOA Bel Air HS
Thursday Aug. 14 Allegany Beall HS
Monday Aug. 18 Old Line Westminster HS
Tuesday Aug. 19 MWSRA Blair HS, Silver Spring
Wednesday Aug. 20 Chesapeake Northeast HS
Wednesday Aug. 27 Mason-Dixon/BBOWS Loch Raven HS
FIELD CLINIC FOR 2-REF SYSTEM
MWSRA will hold a field clinic on the two-referee system, from 8 to 10 a.m. on Saturday, September 6, on the field behind Tilden MS on Old Georgetown Road in Bethesda. This clinic is mandatory for those referees who are newly HS-qualified. For those with less than five years' HS federation experience, attendance at this field clinic will be a major factor in getting high school game assignments this season. For those with more than five years of HS games, the clinic is still very highly recommended. All participants should be prepared to get on the field as both players and referees, so that everyone can get some experience in applying the two-referee system in game situations.
MWSRA CLINIC ON LAW CHANGES
MWSRA's clinic on the 1997 changes to the Laws of the Game will be held Tuesday evening, August 19, in the auditorium at Blair HS in Silver Spring, following the high school rules clinic.
1997 LAW CHANGES
USSF has published its memorandum with the 1997 changes to the Laws of the Game.
The most significant changes are to allow a goal to be scored directly from the kick-off and from a goal-kick, to allow a goalkeeper to move the feet while remaining on the goal line, and to define the ball as in play when it has been kicked and moves. A couple of international board decisions have been made part of the Laws, so that thermal shorts must match the uniform shorts, and a bleeding player must leave the field for treatment. The list of cautionable offenses has been redefined to include unsporting behavior (USB) instead of ungentlemanly conduct, failing to move at least 10 yards from a restart, delaying the restart, and to exclude the automatic caution for encroachment on a penalty kick. The penalties for a "professional" foul against an opponent in an obvious goal-scoring opportunity become provisions of Law, and goal-keeper delay in releasing the ball now will be penalized by an indirect free kick. FIFA has also completed and published a completely rewritten text of the Laws, using simpler, more direct language; you can read or download the text from FIFA's World-Wide Web home page at http://www.fifa.com/index.html
AWARDS
Tadd Dawson was honored with MWSRA's annual Nelson Kobren Service Award, for his many contributions to the organization and his fellow referees. Scott Cecilio, for his extraordinary presence and ability on the field, was picked to receive the Larry Morgan Referee of the Year Award. MWSRA corrected an oversight as Pat Werner received his 20-year service award watch along with his 15-year service blazer. Bob Sands was honored for 15 years' service and received his blazer.
ASSOCIATION BUSINESS
At the July 23 business meeting, Larry Mittleman was reelected by acclamation to the MWSRA Presidency. Roy Eggert is the association's new Vice President. Pat Werner and Alan Cecilio were reelected as Secretary and Treasurer, respectively. Mark Mason was elected to the board, and Don Dennison, Jim Gordon, Miles Kahn, Avner Koldaro and Zsolt Szalay were reelected to the board. Tadd Dawson, after stepping down from the vice presidency, will become MWSRA Training Chairman.
New contracts have been sent out to MWSRA's clients. The contracts include slight increases in game fees. Actual fee levels will depend on any final negotiations before the contracts are signed.
Members will have received a three percent bonus in their checks for games worked in the Spring season this year. The bonus was voted by the membership meeting on July 23.
MWSRA soon will have an updated field directory and roster of members. Members who wish to purchase the new publications will be able to do so at clinics and meetings. The planned price is $5.
ASSIGNMENTS AND ADVICE
We could have as many as 12,500 game assignments this Fall season. Help your assignors cover all those games. Call your assignors. Get yourself free, maybe take some of that leave time that you've earned. MWSRA has given up some clients, but we'll need every referee we have to work as many games as possible. Don't leave the players without a trained referee. Weekday afternoons and evenings as well as weekends, we have lots of games. Please, call the assignors!
We always need new referees. If you know someone who used to be a referee, let Tadd Dawson help them get plugged back in.
Avoid complaints: Arrive early, look sharp, know the Laws and rules, run hard and pay attention. Be courteous; Treat coaches, players and spectators as you'd like to be treated.
Please write your assignments down. If the weather makes an assignment look questionable, call the assignor just before you are to leave. Check your messages - the assignors may have called you with changes or news.
School coaches will be filling out rating cards on you. Give them a good impression of yourself and MWSRA.
Wear one badge on your uniform - the appropriate badge for the match, whether USSF, High School or unaffiliated.
If you're going to be late, let your assignor know so that he can tell the coach or AD that the ref's on the way. If a colleague is late or doesn't show, tell the assignor soonest. There may be a way to get a fill-in, and the missing colleague may be in real trouble.And it'll avoid an adjustment to your check.
MWSRA TRAINING PROGRAM
Are you getting the training you need? If not, what training do you need? All USSF referees must get 5 hours of in-service training a year in order to maintain their USSF grade. MWSRA plans a monthly 2-hour USSF intermediate/ advanced in-service clinic on the third Wednesday of each month, location to be arranged. On Wednesday, September 17, from 7 to 9 pm, Tadd Dawson will instruct an Assistant Referee clinic. Contact Tadd Dawson, e-mail: Tadd.Dawson@USA.NET or phone: (301) 681- 5518, for the location, and pencil the following additional Wednesdays on your calendar: Oct. 15, Nov. 19 and Dec. 17.
Please contact Tadd with your questions, suggestions or comments about what we can do to improve MWSRA's training program.
NEW REFEREE RECRUITMENT
by Tadd Dawson
Why not challenge yourself to recruit some new referees? Sell the joys of officiating to anyone who will listen -- You'll be suprised at some of the responses, and some will even be positive! I propose to make it an unofficial contest. Whoever recruits the most referees who make it through the entry level course will be rewarded. What will the reward be? Since the contest is unofficial, I will have a "neato" unofficial but real prize. Tell your "recruits" to let the instructor of their entry level course that you sent them.
MWSRA's entry-level referee course will begin at 7 pm on Tuesday evening, Sept. 2, in the cafeteria at Eastern IS in Silver Spring. The 18-hour course will convene for 3 hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 3 weeks, ending with the USSF Referee test on Thursday, Sept. 18. The cost is $25 for materials, instructor expenses and room fees, and $25 for USSF registration upon successful completion of the test.
WELL DONE, EVERYBODY!
This Spring, 308 MWSRA referees worked over 7,000 assignments. 38 of our members worked 50 or more games, and 9 members worked over 100 matches. Congratulations to:
Fikry Alam
Dave Berard
Turk Emekli
Pierre Goze
Mike Greenwood
Ron Heller
John Makarov
Singh Danewalia
Zsolt Szalay
We have 489 active referees on the roster. (Active status means having worked in the last year.) Over 96 percent of our active members are registered with USSF. Over 400 of our members are Grade 8 referees.
MENTOR PROGRAM
The Mentoring Program got started last season, but we could do much more. Mentoring helps new referees build confidence, reducing the likelihood that the new officials will drop out of refereeing. Please contact Tadd Dawson by e-mail at Tadd.Dawson@USA.NET or by phone at (301) 681-5518, to request a form to either serve as a mentor or to get a mentor. The forms will help Tadd make a more advantageous match between the participants.
THREE ELEMENTS OF A GOOD REFEREE
by Giovanni Piazza
• Absolute technical proficiency (fouls and mechanics)
• The ability to be consistent as an individual (game after game after game) and as a member of a community (all referees should stick to the same model)
• The ability to enforce the rules in an authoritative, but not authoritarian, fashion.
Giovanni Piazza refereed in Italy's Serie A before coming to the US and earning his USSF National Referee badge.
WHO'S ON MARYLAND'S STATE REFEREE COMMITTEE?
The State Referee Committee, appointed by the state adult and youth soccer association, does administrative and organizational tasks to support the National Referee Program. The SRC recently mailed its new newsletter to all USSF referees in Maryland.
Bob Weisengoff, Chair
1320 Cherokee Lane, Belair, MD 21015-4762
Bill Cassidy, State Referee Administrator
7545 Serenity Drive, Hughesville, MD 20637-2219
Phone (301) 645-3146 E-mail: billc@dsport.com
Jim McGoldrick, State Youth Referee Administrator
4706 Renn Street, Rockville, MD 20853-2770
Phone (301) 871-8119
Jim Bober, State Director of Assessment
7962 Covington Avenue, Glen Burnie, MD 21061-4875
Phone (410) 969-1182
Ulrich Strom, State Director of Instruction
4401 Sheridan Street, Hyattsville, MD 20782-2142
Phone (301) 927-2642 E-mail: ustrom@nsf.gov
Alex Wroblewski, Coordinator of Assignments
1403 Reynolds Street, Baltimore, MD 21230-5319
Phone (410) 625-7527
Wayne Wray, Senior Soccer Representative
7505 Water Lily Way, Columbia, MD 21046-1422
Phone (301) 596-2232, Fax (301) 480-8314
E-mail: wrayw@de45.nidr.nih.gov
FOUND
A flag set and case, left at a private school during the Fall, 1996 season. Tell Lou Hauschild, (301) 983-9083, which school it was and get your flags back.
REFEREES NEEDED FOR TOURNAMENT
Contact Kap Kaplowitz if you would like to work some challenging matches for good pay in the International Gay & Lesbian Football Association's annual tournament, to be held Wednesday, Sept. 24 through Friday, Sept. 26 in Washington, D.C. Kap can be reached at (301) 663-9144 (home) or (202) 906-4470 (work), or you can send him a message by e-mail at r.kap.kaplowitz@WorldNet.ATT.net
REFEREE'S CALENDAR
Tuesday MWSRA High School Federation rules clinic and USSF Law Change clinic. 7 p.m., in the
August 19 auditorium at Blair HS. Cost is $20, payable in cash or by check to MWSRA. Contact Avner Koldaro, (301) 468-6628
Tuesday MWSRA/USSF Entry-Level Referee Course. Cafeteria, Eastern IS, Silver Spring. Course
Sept. 2 will meet 7-10 pm, Sept. 2, 4, 9,11, 16 and 18. Cost $25 for training materials and costs, $25 for USSF registration after successful exam. Contact Tadd Dawson, e-mail: Tadd.Dawson@USA.NET or phone: (301) 681-5518
Saturday MWSRA field clinic on the 2-referee system. Stadium field at Tilden MS on Old
Sept. 6 Georgetown Road in Bethesda, 8-10 a.m.
Monday High School rules test. 7 pm , auditorium, Blair HS, subject to confirmation at the August
Sept. 8 19 HS rules clinic.
Wednesday MWSRA/USSF Assistant Referee Clinic. 7-9 pm, location TBA.
Sept. 17 Contact Tadd Dawson, e-mail: Tadd.Dawson@USA.NET or phone: (301) 681-5518, for the location
Wednesday MWSRA/USSF intermediate/advanced in-service clinic
Oct. 15 Contact Tadd Dawson, e-mail: Tadd.Dawson@USA.NET or phone: (301) 681-5518, for the location and topic
Wednesday MWSRA/USSF intermediate/advanced in-service clinic
Nov. 19 Contact Tadd Dawson, e-mail: Tadd.Dawson@USA.NET or phone: (301) 681-5518, for the location and topic
Thursday Annual Thanksgiving Day referee soccer match. Time and field TBA
Nov. 27
Wednesday MWSRA/USSF intermediate/advanced in-service clinic
Dec. 17 Contact Tadd Dawson, e-mail: Tadd.Dawson@USA.NET or phone: (301) 681-5518, for the location and topic