Keep Quiet?

[WhatWuzThatBlue]

Tim,
It appears that you've received some well intended but misguided advice. No matter whether you are working with a 40 year veteran or a first day rookie, you are out there together. While some feel that if a guy hangs himself, you should just stand by and watch what transpires, that is the opposite of what they teach professional umpires. Watch a big league crew sometime...they work in concert and protect each other, regardless of the call.

A more appropriate response may well have been to:
1) insure that no others could join the fracas
2) once #1 is done, approach your partner and LISTEN
3) when the conversation begins to turn, you step in between and keep the dramatic from happening (recall this in the NCAA tapes we discussed a few months ago?)
4) ask (at this point you don't TELL) the manager to step away and get your partner to 'consult' with you out of earshot
5) ASK your partner what he called and LISTEN
6) If he kicked it, you have to inform him or you are setting the game up for a protest and not doing your job
7) Put your game faces on and get the call made correctly - the two of you approach the coach (again, away from the fans and players) and HE informs the coach that he was applying a Fed rule in an OBR game. He eats some crow, you look like you are at his side and the both of you look like pros.
8) BUY HIM A BEER after the game - the guy doing the finger wagging always buys the first round.
9) Remember that you need him there for you when you boot one some day. It happens to all of us.