[MCBear]

I was refereeing a boys' match a couple of years ago and did not notice that there was a torn section just below the cable in the middle of the net. We are playing along and the team on my left is serving. Server hits the ball and it is a bullet. I try to get ahead of the ball to see the contact by the receiving team when I hear the ball hit the net cable. I turn my head back just in time to see the ball contact the floor on the receiving team's side about two feet beyond the centerline. I assumed that there was a let serve and begin to award a point to the serving team. The receiving team came totally unglued and I had no idea what the heck they were complaining about.

The captain of the receiving team came to the stand and told me that the ball went through the torn section of the net and did not go over it. I called my line judge over and asked him what had happened. He said that the served ball had hit the net cable and gone through the torn section in the net to land on the court. Once I had confirmation of what had happened, I signaled net serve on the serving team and awarded loss of rally to the opponent.

Ever since then, when I see a net with even a slight tear, I get some adhesive tape and make sure that it is patched enough that a ball cannot get through it.