Watching A Game

by Tom Fakehany

     After you've become an official, attending games is different from when you were just a fan. Obviously you're much more aware of the officials and what they are doing. With that comes tremendous responsibility. You now must watch a game the right way.
    Be invisible. Maintain this philosophy: You don't want people to know you're an official. If you are identified as an official while attending games, you're opening yourself up for questions, comments and criticism. Every time there's a close call or controversial ruling, fans will look to you for an explanation. Don't look at that as an ego stroke; it's not. It is a tough situation to handle while maintaining your officiating integrity and professionalism. Avoid it all by staying in the background.
    Don't wear your uniform. Whether you're a first-year official or a grizzled veteran, you're probably proud to be an official. You also might be proud of the officials association you belong to or the league you work in. Attending a game is not the time to display your pride. Do not wear your officiating uniform or association or league jacket or patches while attending a game. Wearing your uniform or any other items obviously identifies you as an official. If you're working multiple games and you've got a break between games, change into something else or don't sit in the stands.   Remember, you're a potential target for the players, coaches and fans of the game you just worked and the game you're about to work. You don't want a confrontation and you don't want "schmoozing," either.
     Sit alone. If there's an area away from fans, sit there. That way, even if people know you are an official, they have to go out their way to talk to you. Don't criticize the officials. Sadly, for many officials, that's the most difficult part of attending a game. That's because some revel in
people's mistakes and enjoy pointing them out to others. It makes them feel good. it also ruins their professional reputations. There's little more appalling than an official publicly bad-mouthing another official, especially while attending a game and watching that official work. Keep in mind how important the officiating brotherhood is and how violating that trust among officials hurts others. After all, if the officiating is really that lousy, you ought to be doing some positive things to help those officials (a post game conference, a follow-up phone call, an association meeting topic, etc.)and not criticizing them.
     Don't comment to fans. If you're truly a member of the officiating community, you care about the officials working the game whether you know them or not. You feel good for them when they make a great call. You also hurt with them when things go awry. One thing that happens in all games: Fans criticize officials. Those comments are even more apparent when you're in the stands. Resist the urge to verbally fight back. Realistically, you're not going to change their outlook on us and you're surely opening yourself up for problems. If it gets too bad, move to another section or leave. Be careful answering questions. If you're a locally known official in attendance, your role is difficult. Many fans will look to you for answers about things occurring in the game. Many of those questions will be about judgment calls. Resist answering them. The fans are often looking for support in their arguments. If you say, "That was a bad call," or, "I wouldn't have called it that way," you're fueling the fire.
     Some questions are rules-related.   Answer them carefully. If the officials handled a rule correctly, explain what they did. If they didn't, either avoid the question or explain the rule carefully without criticizing the officials. That's a very difficult thing to do. Sometimes, your safest move is to say, "1 didn't see the entire play," or, "We don't have the same view as they do on the field." That little white lie hurts less than trashing the officials.
     Keep emotions in check. That's especially true when you're a parent watching your son or daughter play. Someone once said, "Officials watch games with their eyes; players, coaches and fans watch games with their hearts." Even though your offspring is involved, you must avoid emotional displays created by watching a game with your heart. Many officiating reputations have been damaged when officials lost control and acted like fans.

If you can't watch your son or daughter play without showing emotion against the officials, you have only two real options: Don't attend the games or quit officiating. There's more responsibility and accountability when watching a game after you've become an official. Look at it as a great opportunity to learn from others while avoiding controversy and your attendance will help, not hurt, your career.
Remember, the game is bigger than all of us and it's going to be around long after we are gone. Officials and Coaches as caretakers of the sport, are responsible to try to maintain it for the next generation. This responsibility should not be taken lightly.

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