At what point do you acknowledge fans/parents?

[Adam]

Was this a school sponsored game or an AAU/YMCA/travel league game of some sort? How involved was game management in general?

[ILRef80]

Originally Posted by Snaqwells

Was this a school sponsored game or an AAU/YMCA/travel league game of some sort? How involved was game management in general?

School game. Game management was as involved as anyone could ask, considering the level. He checked on us between halves and sat at the end of the bleachers while the game was being played.

[Junker]

Originally Posted by ILRef80

School game. Game management was as involved as anyone could ask, considering the level. He checked on us between halves and sat at the end of the bleachers while the game was being played.

If it was bad enough that you had to post about it, maybe you should have said something to game management. Was it going on before half-time? That might be a good time to ask them to keep an eye on their fans as they were getting borderline out of hand. I wouldn't be afraid to dump someone in a JH game. Some of those parents have no idea what sportsmanship looks like. In fact, the only fan I've ever had removed was from a JH game. He also happened to be on the school board of the district I worked in. Not a great situation, but he needed to go.

[Coltdoggs]

I agree with most of what the others have said...listen for the entertainment factor. If it becomes overly personal and crosses the line into affecting your ability to focus on the game out of fear for your physical well being, then you should tell management.

I think the level is important also...I'm going to have a heck of a lot more tolerance the higher the level. THe lower level rec league stuff...it's about sportsmanship and I won't hesitate to say something directly to the parents and if need be toss em...For the most part, you just gotta ignore it.

I have on occassion when waiting to resume play tried to lighten the mood and made a joke about their comments...Something like, "Man, you guys are all OVER the calls today..." see what they say and see if you can joke about it and lightetn the situation...I've found that if they see the "human side" of us, it sometimes eases their tension...

In my rec league that I sit on the board and ref in....I stopped a game and told an overly loud, obnoxious dad during 5/6 grade playoff game last year that I had heard enough of his comments...He got smart with me that I was addressing him (something about I should be focused on the game and not him)....at that point I told him I was no longer the ref speaking to him and it was now the Board Member for the league and if he wanted to continue watching from the gym, he'd be quiet the rest of the game. Didn't hear another word from him...After the game his wife came up and apologized to me for his behavior....

EDIT: As DanRef said...the guy you toss should be the first one that goes smart *** after you appeal to them as an adult...

[Adam]

It's obvious that your concentration was affected. The tolerance level for this is going to vary by official. Some have just never experienced this level of behavior, some have just never heard it because they legitimately tune it out during a game. There's nothing that says you should have to take the abuse, just because some refs can tune it out.

I wouldn't address them personally, though. Stop the game, get game management to deal with it. They will deal with the problem. If they were sitting near them, they should have dealt with it already.