[VaTerp]

Coach- Let me first say that in this day and age where internet forums are filled with people like me who think they know everything, its encouraging to see someone genuinely seeking to learn. I haven't gone through this whole thread but you've received some great feedback already and I'd like to add a few things from the perspective of someone who has coached, officiated, and run various levels of youth sports leagues for local parks and rec agencies, boys and girls clubs, and AAU tournaments.

I very much concur with the post above. There are a few facts that you are going to have to accept about the officiating at the level of ball that you are now coaching-

* Officials CAN help improve youth play but that is NOT their objective or priority. A lot goes into officiating that non-officials likely do no think about. Referees at this level are often learning themselves and their objective is to learn how to officiate not teach kids how to play. That's what the coaches are for.

* Officiating this level of play is often more challenging than higher levels b/c the players lack body control making it hard to determine whether or not its the actual contact placing players at a disadvantage. Remember that, by rule, all contact is not a foul and many players at this age/level become off balanced on their own accord. They also lack overall fundamentals and skill resulting in awkward execution of moves that make it difficult to judge legality. Combine this with the point above regarding less experienced refs and you are going to get officiating that ranges from awful at worst to inconsistent at best.

*You have no control over the officiating and should not expect very experienced, or frankly, very good officials to be working these types of games. Expecting these games to be officiated at a high level would be the same as expecting your kids to play the game at a high level. Do you get as frustrated that your kids don't shoot over 50%, execute complex offensive sets, finish above the rim, etc.? Of course not. And you actually have some control over their play as opposed to the performance of the officials. And frankly, if the videos you posted are the worst of the officiating at your games, then you don't have it that bad. A lot of those plays have no impact on the game and/or are calls that are going to be missed by having 2 officials as opposed to 3 person crews that work most games at the varsity level and up.

Given these things I would offer the following advice:

* Adjust your perspective and Stop focusing on, and stressing over, the officiating. You have no control over it, should not have any reasonable expectation that these types of games will included experienced high level officials, and as you admitted you have limited rules knowledge yourself, which makes you less than qualified to offer a true critique of the officiating.

* Take your energy and instead invest it in your players and yourself as a coach. Its great that you sought out this forum to learn more about officiating but your focus should really be on learning more about coaching the game. Are you attending any trainings/clinics for coaching? Reading books about coaching? Finding drills on teaching fundamentals? Asking local HS or other experienced coaches if you can attend their practices or summer camps? I don't know how much time you have or what you ultimately want to get out of this but there are lots of resources out there if you truly want to get better as a coach. And it would be time MUCH better spent than worrying about the officiating or coming to this site.

* Even if you don't have a lot of time and are only coaching at this level to "help out" or something along those lines, I would at the very least search the web or go to the library for some basic resources on coaching and drilling fundamentals. Regardless the skill level of your players, you can never go wrong teaching fundamentals of the game. And if your players are fundamentally sound, they will get the benefit of the doubt on officiating over the long haul. And more importantly it will lead to a better experience and they will get more out of playing this game, even if it's just to pass time and get some exercise once or twice a week.