[MCBear]

Most of us know who the coaches are who will try to get away with stuff and who the ones are who really push our buttons.

So, in your matches, if that coach is constantly pushing and disrespecting the officiating crew, having no respect for the rules or the integrity of the game, feel free to nail her to the wall with penalty cards. I am sure that when she starts receiving red cards that cost her team points, she will get the message. (Either that, or she will feel that everyone is out to get her - and she could just be right!!!!!)

I just have to keep remembering that when the coach is acting like a jerk, it has nothing to do with me - it is about them and what is going on in their life. Therefore, I don't want to take it personally.

Where we, as officials, get messed up is when we allow the coach to suck us in to their world and we begin reacting to what is happening rather than taking action to prevent things from getting worse. Something a mentor of mine said keeps popping up..."Kill the monster while it is small. If you let it go, it will only grow bigger until it is unmanageable."

I hope that my male bias is not showing, but I know that there are coaches out there who love to play mind games with any official who will let them do so. Like I said earlier, when it happens (and it will happen, believe me!), kill the monster while it is small!.