Fair play

[Berkut]

Maybe a bit too niche for its own thread but let's give it a go.

Picking up on an interesting discussion that occurred over a couple of threads over diving in the Euros.  There were a couple of things I appreciated about Chiellini's foul near the end of regulation time. For starters it was a smart play.  Much better to commit a foul in a way that draws a certain yellow than to allow that English speedster to get way.  But the thing I liked most about that play is there was no attempt to deceive or mask the play.  And he didn't complain afterward.  He knew the penalty for what he was going to do, measured the risks and decided the foul was worth taking.

I have a question for Berkut.  When I was a player, I had a perception that the refs who frequently saw me in action knew I was not a flopper and I never complained about a call.  Although, if I thought the ref was missing something, I would pick a quiet moment to say something only they could hear about looking for such and such.  When I did get hit, I would normally get the call.

I was thinking about that watching the English Flopper from the semi-finals.  In the final the ref was not giving him any calls (and I think rightfully so - he was flopping in the final as well)

In your experience - does perception of a player enter into the thinking of a ref, or was me thinking my rep as a clean player giving me the benefit of the doubt just in my head.

That's a tough one.

The actual answer is....well, yeah. If you ref a certain league or group, of course you start to get to know the players. You definitely get to know the coaches!

You get to know who bitches about every single call, and you know you can basically (but not entirely) ignore them. And you know who actually knows the rules, and who doesn't, and who, when they say something....you should maybe give them a bit more attention, because they know to pick their spots to call something out, and they DO know the rules.

When it comes to players, yep - they get reputations with the officials for sure. How could they not?

It's different between American football and basketball. In basketball, players get a rep for being whiners or floppers. It's not so great though - mainly because I call a foul in basketball before they get a chance to complain, so the complaining when I don't doesn't really effect much. The floppers (trying to get a charge called) are a little more of a rep thing, but really - a charge call only happens a few times a game, and it is so bang-bang I pretty much always make that call in my head long before it really registers which players are involved.

American football is a little different, and depends on the level. You definitely start to get an idea for who plays dirty, and this is more of a concern in football. The offensive linemen who is known for taking that extra shove after the whistle if he thinks he can get away with it, or the linebacker who is always seeming to look for that blindside "blowup" hit away from the play. With football, especially at the college level, it is more about trying to forestall a injury risk. This is a LOT easier now with the changes in the rules over the last decade around late hits, blindside hits, and unnecessary roughness.

All THAT being said, as a referee, I do make i a point in my pre-game with my crew to talk about tendencies, and then talk about making sure we don't let tendencies make a call. Just because Sarah is known for trying to draw a charge every time she sets up in the paint, doesn't mean it isn't a charge! And just because Bob has drawn 4 unsportsmanlike late hit penalties this year does not mean that if someone is one the ground and Bob is standing there you should throw the flag - you still have to SEE the hit and know it was late or unnecessary.

[crazy canuck]

Thanks!

I would have liked you as a ref when I was a player.