[bainsey]

JV-G, I'm the U, with a younger R.

I get on the court, and start counting white jerseys. The court is really crowded, and I can't believe I just counted....19?!? I double and triple check. Yup, 19. It turns out four were swingers, but still, that's more than I've ever seen in our little corner.

The R approaches me after taking care of the book, and tells me there are multiple home players wearing the same number. I tell him he has to handle that one; no-one can share a number.

A minute later, the R says the coach claims a high-level official already told him last game it was okay for multiple players to share numbers, provided the same two numbers weren't on the court simultaneously. I'm not buying this; I tell the R to stand firm and have some numbers taped up. I talk with the coach, and he drops an even higher-level name that said it was okay. Still not buying it. They taped up a few numbers, giving everyone a unique one, and the game was no problem beyond that.

Long story short -- I emailed my interpreter, who backed me up, and sent an email to everyone on our board that "identical numbers are not allowed." It was apparent than no high-level anyone told this team it was okay.

If you're certain of a rule, stick to your guns, and trust your supervisors to back you up.