This should be fun
 

Tonight is the second to last night this season for our local rec league HS boys. We have a "problem" coach at one of the games. Usually, when this occurs, I get assigned to the game. However, tonight I'm not working his game, I'm going to sit behind his bench instead. This way I'll get to hear all his comments even if the officials don't. Of course, being a Board member, I have the authority to eject anyone from the gym. That's one of our best rules.

Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy. I can hardly wait. I'm going to the gym in just a few minutes. Better put on my Board of Directors shirt. Yes - we have those.

BTW - I get to work the two games after his. It's going to be a long night.

Bait and Switch?
 

This almost sounds like a sting operation.

Why not round it off with an overly officious scorekeeper and have a real blast! ;)

You ought to do what they do with English Premier League games. The on field official has an earpiece and can hear what the 4th official on the sidelines is telling him. Can you imagine him getting T'd up when the far official quotes him verbatim as to what merited the call?

I wish I had this on video. About 30 seconds into the game, this guy jumps up with his hands in the air and yells at the court "WHAAAAAT?!?!" on a travel call against his team. His assistant pops up, elbows him in the side and when the coach looks at him, the assistant nods in my direction. The coach turns his head and looks at me. He gets this glazed look in his eyes. He then just sits down and didn't say another thing except to his team the rest of the game.

The best part was that, during a timeout in the third quarter, he asked one of the officials about a rule interp and then asked the official to make sure I knew it was just an inquiry and that he wasn't questioning a call.

Somehow, that made it all worthwhile. BTW - his team blew a 10 point lead to start the fourth and lost by 8. I'm sure it was extra tough for him not to explode at the refs late in the game.

You should have had a clipboard in your hands. then you could have shaken your head and started writing something down. that would have really started him stressin.:)

Don't forget a big microphone and a tape recorder. :D

That's evil. :D

We had a Board meeting last night and I related what happened. Everyone there just chuckled. We also discussed another "problem" coach. This coming weekend is the last of our season and I'm going to be assigned to his game on Saturday. The hits just keep on coming.

The really good news is that we're probably going to give all the refs a raise next season. We have to be competitive with the other rec leagues around here (there's tons of them) or we lose refs to them.

This time, go incognito. Hat pulled low....collar turned up. Don't let 'em know you are there. :)

How much is competitive wage/game in your neck of the woods for that type of league?

Well, since I'll be working the game, that might be a real challenge, especially since I haven't worn a collared ref shirt in quite some time (although we do have one guy who still wears one). Besides, blowing the whistle does tend to draw some attention to oneself. ;)

Rec leagues around here pay anywhere from $20 - $30 for kids games. $23 is paid by the league for which I'm on the Board for 3-8 grade and $25 for HS games. The local YMCA is the entity that pays only $20 and the "competitive" rec league I work a lot pays $30 for regular season games and $25 for playoffs and tournaments. There's a rather large rec league near here that pays about $26 - $28 per game.

My bad...thought you were doing another 'behind the bench eval'. :o

I would carry a little clip board in my back pocket and get it out every time he looked at me funny and start shaking and writing.

One of those pocket recorders might be fun, too.