Evaluation of camp observer

[Mark Dexter]

Originally Posted by refprof

1. It was recommended that I should have stepped between the players as they were ready to take physical action rather than screaming at them and blowing my whistle.

Most of the time, stepping between two players works well, but you do have to be careful. If you sense that the situation has gone too far (i.e., a punch is imminent), stay back and do what you can from a safe distance.

[truerookie]

IMO, you did a fine job not stepping between players you could have been in risk of getting punched. In this situation, the attitudes festered for an entire half before you stepped on the court. Normally, a tweet on the whistle and a verbal I got the foul works.

[rainmaker]

you might ask if there's game tape available and see if there's another observer from that camp who would be willing to look at the situation with you. Don't take the perspective that your observer screwed you, but that you'd like to add to your list of possibilities for how to handle the situation.

The other thing you might have done at the moment (if you could have gotten a word in edgewise) would have been to ask for details from the obwerver you were dealing with. "I see. Now how do you do that, specifically? I'm not a very confrontational person, so specfic sentences or physical actions would be helpful, if you could describe them." This gives you something that might be useful in another game, and it gives the observer the idea that you're listening to him even if you think he's a complete jerk.