This is a Good One!

[PIAA REF]

Last Night I had a Varsity Girls game. I notice that the away team has illegal headbands on. They are black headbands but they have white writing the whole way around the band. I think they said Air Nike multiple times around the head band. I go over to let the coach know that they are illegal. He said. They are black, I said but that writing around them is what makes them illegal. If it only said Nike once it would have been fine but not how it was. He said I called Nike and they said it was ok and that they were legal. I payed 200 dollars so my team could wear them so they better be legal. Sorry coach they are not legal. But Nike said they are, tell them I said they aren't. He wasn't too happy. I do hate being the uniform police though.

[26 Year Gap]

Originally Posted by PIAA REF

Last Night I had a Varsity Girls game. I notice that the away team has illegal headbands on. They are black headbands but they have white writing the whole way around the band. I think they said Air Nike multiple times around the head band. I go over to let the coach know that they are illegal. He said. They are black, I said but that writing around them is what makes them illegal. If it only said Nike once it would have been fine but not how it was. He said I called Nike and they said it was ok and that they were legal. I payed 200 dollars so my team could wear them so they better be legal. Sorry coach they are not legal. But Nike said they are, tell them I said they aren't. He wasn't too happy. I do hate being the uniform police though.

Were they plain on the other side?

[JugglingReferee]

His thought process was to phone the manufacturer to see if they're legal? Regardless of the rule, what are the chances that a manufacturer is going to say, "yes our product is illegal - so don't buy them?"

To understand a rule, talk to the rules makers or the rules enforcers. Geesh.

[PIAA REF]

No they were the same on both sides

[grunewar]

Originally Posted by PIAA REF

I payed 200 dollars so my team could wear them so they better be legal.

Why would a coach pay $200 to wear a headband with a logo? Are they getting free shoes or something?

[Adam]

Was this their first game? Did they just get them in?

[referee99]

I had girls JV. Team had Red jerseys with Gold accents and trim.
Players warming up with Gold pre-wrap headbands.
"Coach, your players are going to have to switch to legal headbands"
"But, they're Gold"
"They are illegal"
"But we have gold on our jerseys!"
"They would need to be the primary color of the jersey. What's the primary color of your jersey?"
"Red, but with Gold!"
"Coach, you are going to have to remove the illegal headbands"
"We have played 12 games. All of the other refs said gold was okay"
"Not tonight coach."

[ma_ref]

Originally Posted by referee99

"We have played 12 games. All of the other refs said gold was okay"

This is what kills me the most about uniform infractions (and sometimes a few other rules, but mostly uniform stuff). This should really only be an issue for the first game of the season (maybe 2 tops). I know we hate to be uniform police, but it makes all of us look bad when some choose to enforce the rules, and others turn a blind eye to them.

[Amesman]

Originally Posted by ma_ref

I know we hate to be uniform police, but it makes all of us look bad when some choose to enforce the rules, and others turn a blind eye to them.

Got that right.

[Spence]

Originally Posted by ma_ref

This is what kills me the most about uniform infractions (and sometimes a few other rules, but mostly uniform stuff). This should really only be an issue for the first game of the season (maybe 2 tops). I know we hate to be uniform police, but it makes all of us look bad when some choose to enforce the rules, and others turn a blind eye to them.

Our recent association meeting showed me why I've run into the "you're the first...." discussion. Many think that the "pre wrap" doesn't fall under the headband rule because of where the girls wear it. They thought that since it wasn't worn on the forehead that it wasn't a headband. Some didn't understand that it could be the predominant color of the jersey. Some confused pre-wrap with the scrunch worn on the ponytail.

[grunewar]

Originally Posted by Spence

Our recent association meeting showed me why I've run into the "you're the first...." discussion. Many think that the "pre wrap" doesn't fall under the headband rule because of where the girls wear it. They thought that since it wasn't worn on the forehead that it wasn't a headband. Some didn't understand that it could be the predominant color of the jersey. Some confused pre-wrap with the scrunch worn on the ponytail.

This was specifically addressed in great detail at our State meeting this yr. There should have been no confusion or excuses here.

[Man In Blue]

i have had the same problem with knee braces. Player is warmingnup with a brace with a hard plastic hinge.

Because it was a JV game I didn't notice the brace (player had pants). With 3 minutes I go to the coach and tell her that player 32 has an illegal brace and she can not play with it on.

Coach says classic she has played with it all year and no one has said anything. I told the coach that normally a brace like that one comes with a cover.

At this point the head coach and AD come over. I explain that the brace is illegal. I asked if they agreed that the brace had exposed hard plastic (not the smartest way to handle it). They did agree it was illegal.

The AD yelled at the girl and asked if there was a "cover for the brace"? The girl said yes and it was at home . The AD said he would get the parents to go get it.

The coaches wanted to know if she could play with the brace until the parents came back with the cover. I asked them again if they agreed that the brace was illegal. They did. So we started the game with out the player.

A couple of lessons, even in a sub varsity- check uniforms and equipment as early as possible so that the team can adjust and or find the proper equipment.

Also do your job enforcing the rules from the start of the season. In this case this the player was a freshman playing in a soph game. Freshman officials are normally "newer" but this brace was obviously illegal.

[PIAA REF]

I think that they had just purchased these.

[Adam]

Originally Posted by PIAA REF

He said I called Nike and they said it was ok and that they were legal. I payed 200 dollars so my team could wear them so they better be legal. Sorry coach they are not legal. But Nike said they are.

Of course they said that, coach. You gave them $200.

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by Spence

Our recent association meeting showed me why I've run into the "you're the first...." discussion. Many think that the "pre wrap" doesn't fall under the headband rule because of where the girls wear it. They thought that since it wasn't worn on the forehead that it wasn't a headband. Some didn't understand that it could be the predominant color of the jersey. Some confused pre-wrap with the scrunch worn on the ponytail.

That means SOME of your membership weren't paying attention during the rules clinic.