Most of us, on most weekends, coach referees who we have seen before, know or have at least some background knowledge of. However, that is not always the case. One of the key areas of successful coaching is based around knowing your athlete.
As we move towards our NSW Country, Metropolitan and State Championship carnivals, many of us will be coaching referees that we’ve never seen before and know little about. Coaching is about building relationships as much as anything else. If we as coaches have a little background knowledge of the referees we’re coaching, the outcomes will no doubt be improved.
Referees, especially younger ones, will respond so much better if we can greet them at that initial meeting with a simple welcome and a statement like “How was your trip down from [home town]?” or “So I hear you play Rugby for [home club], I used to play against them when I played.” Not only do these type of statements show the referee that you know about them, but they’re real ‘ice breaker’ statements as well, putting the referee at ease about speaking with you.
In the lead up to our Championship weekend, we have developed the Referee Personal Profile sheet (below). This will be sent to referees by the carnival coordinators. Referees will be expected to complete the sheet and return it to the coordinator who will then forward each referees Profile to each coach prior to the carnival.
The sections at the bottom part of the Profile, about Refereeing Background and Personal Goals, will also give you, as a coach, some insight into where the referee is on their personal refereeing development journey and may give you a clue as to your ‘starting’ point in working with that referee.
While this a profile sheet has been specifically designed for the Country/Metropolitan/State Championship carnivals, it will obviously have value in other circumstances:
- New referees to your Association
- Any ‘team based’ referee carnival/gala day where referees are visiting a particular area
- Referee Interchange programs etc.